Prairie State Wire

More than 3,000 target shooters from all U.S. states, four Canadian provinces, and five other countries participated in the 125th American Trapshooting Association's Grand American competition at the World Shooting and Recreational Complex (WSRC) in Sparta this summer. The event was held from July 31 to August 10.

The WSRC, managed by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), saw participants shoot a total of 4 million program and practice targets. Among the 3,058 trapshooters present, 99 were from Brazil. Additionally, over 200,000 sporting clays targets were thrown during the competition.

There was an increase in vendors on the east target line compared to last year, and a 13% rise in sporting clays revenue was recorded. New carts for transportation within the facility were rented out 69 times during the event.

"Things went very well during this year's Grand, and the coordination between us and the ATA was exceptional. I'm excited about what the future holds for the Grand and the World Shooting Complex," stated WSRC Director Skip Klinger. He expressed gratitude towards both his staff and IDNR staff for their efforts in making the event successful.

The Grand American has been hosted by WSRC since 2006 and is considered one of the largest shooting events globally with an estimated economic impact of $25 million to $30 million annually. The event features more than 20 competitions attracting over 5,000 competitors and spectators each year.

Prior to the Grand American, the AIM competition took place from July 24-30 at WSRC as part of ATA's official youth program. This year, a total of 1,660 youth participants shot approximately 510,800 trap program targets along with skeet and sporting clays.

Looking ahead to next year’s event scheduled for July 30 to August 9 at WSRC, Klinger promised further improvements: "When the Grand returns next year...visitors are going to see even more improvements...including edging at all 120 trap fields so that grass no longer lays on walkways." Other enhancements include resolving water issues in trap houses alongside fresh striping on parking lots as preparations begin for another successful edition in2025.