Maltese shooters were again the protagonists at the Malta International Open Grand Prix as Nathan Lee Xuereb edged William Chetcuti to win the double trap title at the Bidnija ranges yesterday.

After Clive Farrugia’s triumph in Tuesday’s skeet competition, home hopes were put on Xuereb and Chetcuti to provide more satisfaction to the Malta Shooting Sport Federation.

And the two Maltese shooters duly delivered as Xuereb and Chetcuti gave life to a thrilling duel at the Bidnija ranges which ultimately saw Xuereb just about prevail to win the gold medal.

Xuereb had made his intentions clear right from the morning qualifying rounds when he compiled scores of 26, 29, 28, 29 and 29 to top the leaderboard on 141 points.

Chetcuti was the other Maltese shooter to make it through to the final when finishing fourth with 137 points.

The Maltese duo were up against four other Italian shooters for the title after Andrea Vescovi, Ignazio Tronca, Davide Gasparini and Ferdinando Rossi all made the top-six cut.

However, the final turned out to be an all-Maltese affair with Xuereb and Chetcuti producing a thrilling battle which saw the former just prevail with a total of 74 points, one clear of Chetcuti who had to settle for the silver medal.

Tronca was the other shooter on the podium when he placed third on 54 points.

The Malta International Open Grand Prix will now continue this weekend when the Trap competition will be held on Saturday and Sunday.

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