Cardiff University Rifle Club: sharing our sport with new students

Target shooting is an inclusive sport that is available to almost everyone. Cardiff University Rifle Club give a warm welcome to all students who are interested in the sport, whether just for fun or to compete. We asked Cardiff to tell us more about their club and opportunities available to their members.

“There are lots of ways to get involved in shooting but by far the easiest and cheapest (for those on a student budget!) is by joining a club at university. All equipment is provided and membership fees are considerably cheaper than most rifle clubs (just £35 a year at Cardiff University). No experience is required, and there are opportunities to shoot competitively at a national level and also just for fun. With no early morning training sessions and no high level of fitness required, university rifle clubs are a great way to get involved in university sport and target shooting.

Founded over 50 years ago, Cardiff University Rifle Club (CURC) is part of almost 300 sports clubs and societies at Cardiff University, through which over 10,000 students are involved! As part of Cardiff University Student Union, we run regular shooting sessions throughout the year, as well as social events and fun weekends at Bisley. We take part in a variety of competitions, ranging from our rivalry with Swansea University, national university competitions (BUCS), national championships, events such as the Imperial Meeting, and more.

2017/18 was a really successful year for CURC. We narrowly came 4th for the second year in a row at the BUCS indoor finals and left the outdoor competition, with Golds in the men’s individual and quartet and a silver in the pairs. This summer we also entered a fullbore competition for the first time and finished 4th in the BUCS short range match, which takes place during the Imperial meeting in July. This semester we hope to build on these successes and get more students involved in target shooting. It’s a great way to make friends, try out a competitive sport, get involved in university life and ultimately, to have fun!

Completely run by students, there are six members on CURC’s committee who organise everything from booking ranges, entering competitions, holding social events, taking care of equipment, applying for and keeping track of a yearly budget and looking after all the members. Anyone thinking of joining a university rifle club should check out their Student Union’s website, or search for the club on social media and get in contact with the committee. It’s their job to get as many students as possible involved and they’re always happy to hear from someone who is interested in joining or who just wants to find out more. Target shooting is perfect for anyone looking to take part in sport as it gives the opportunity to be competitive and represent your team, and can also be laid back for those who don’t want the pressure of training and competing. We know how much fun and what a great sport target shooting can be, so we hope to share what we enjoy with as many people as possible to keep both the club and the sport growing each year.”