ST AUSTELL has a new world record holder in former Penrice Academy pupil Denzil Grose. The 20-year-old, representing Great Britain, won gold at an International Sport Shooting Federation (ISSF) Junior World Cup competition in Cairo, Egypt, and in the process set a world record score for junior men.

The young marksman, who last year was selected for a new Olympic potential programme run by British Shooting, competes in the Olympic skeet discipline which involves hitting moving clay targets.

Denzil, who has won championships and set records before, first competed in clay target shooting when he was 10 years old and has now been competing in Olympic skeet for a few years. He is aiming to take part in the Olympic Games in Brisbane, Australia, in 2032.

Denzil qualified in third place for the final in Egypt, which took place under sunny skies, and he was clearly delighted after winning the event, picking up his first World Cup competition medal, and setting a new record.

He said: “I’ve been doing a lot of training camps with British Shooting, a lot of training at home, two or three times a week, and a bit of pre-event training.”

Of the qualification round, he said: “It was good. I finished on 119 and finished with a couple of straights as well.”

Denzil, who was competing in his first final under a new format, said: “It was a lot quicker than the old format. I had a technical difficulty with my gun but we managed to come together and sort that and it all worked out.”

Denzil, who has been congratulated on “an absolutely phenomenal job” in Cairo, is a two-time British junior champion.

He has represented Great Britain at several international competitions and as a member of the England team at junior level has gained three caps.