Peter Boden (born 18 September 1947) is a British former sports shooter. He specialised in Olympic Trap clay pigeon shooting.
Boden competed at four Summer Olympics; the 1976 Summer Olympics, 1984 Summer Olympics, 1996 Summer Olympics and 2000 Summer Olympics.
Boden also qualified for the Moscow 1980 Summer Olympics but the GB shooting team withdrew due to political reasons."Pull! Magazine July/August 1996 - Page 28 - The Official Journal of the Clay Pigeon Shooting Association"
He represented England and won a gold medal in the clay pigeon trap and a silver medal in the trap pairs with Peter Croft, at the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Four years later he represented England and won a silver medal in the clay pigeon trap and a gold medal in the trap pairs with Ian Peel, at the 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Boden was also five-times British Grand Prix Champion - 1975, 1980, 1983 (joint), 1993 and 1999.Pull! Magazine - September Edition - 1999 - Pages 32 & 33. The Official Journal of the Clay Pigeon Shooting Association.
Early shooting career Boden first started shooting at the age of 12, when he did some 'rough shooting' for pigeons and rabbits at farms near to his Bedworth home. He then slowly developed his talent during a long apprenticeship at local shoots. He was a member of both Fillongley and Berkswell shooting clubs.Coventry Evening Telegraph - 15th January 1983 - page 14
Boden's first national title was the British Open Double Rise Championship at Doncaster, in March 1970. He scored a the-then record points total of 182 from 200.
His second title followed just a month later at Bisley, where he won the English Open Double Rise Championship, with a score of 173 (after a shoot-off).Coventry Evening Telegraph - 10th March 1970 - Page 13Coventry Evening Telegraph - 6th April 1970 - Page 13
It was in 1973 that he was first called up into the GB Universal Trench (5-Trap) Team. This would be his first taste of international shooting.Coventry Evening Telegraph - 15th January 1983 - Page 14
Olympic Games In 1976, Boden headed off to Montreal for his first ever Olympic Games. He was accompanied by fellow trapshooter, Malcolm Jenkins of Dunstable. Boden did not start well in his pursuit of a medal. On the first day, his score was well below his usual standard, hitting just 63 from 75. This left him down in 27th position. On Day-2, his score slightly improved, 68 from 75, which moved him up into 20th position.Coventry Evening Telegraph - 20th July - 1976 - Page 14 But on the final day he hit only 38 from 50, giving him a final score of 169 from 200 targets. Overall, he finished 28th.Coventry Evening Telegraph - 21st July - 1976 - Page 22 However, Jenkins fared better, finishing 18th, with a score of 177. All three days at the L’Acadie Range were marred by very strong winds, especially the last day when shooters were faced with near gale-force conditions. American Don Haldeman won the gold medal with a score of 190. Due to the events of the Munich Games four years earlier; heavy security was in force for all athletes, but especially the shooting teams. But Boden, was not impressed with some of the security arrangements. During the games he said that every journey from the Olympic Village to the shooting range they had a police escort with a helicopter hovering overhead. Ironically, on every trip so far, the security guards on the bus, have fallen asleep—and one day they had to wake one of them up, to tell him we had arrived! He added that we spend about 10 hours a day getting to and from the site, and of that we were shooting for about 80 minutes.Coventry Evening Telegraph - 16th July - 1976 - Page 26
At the Los Angeles Games in 1984, Boden finished in 14th place, shooting a 25-straight in his final round. He finished with a score of 185 from 200—11 below his personal best. His GB teammate, Peter Croft, scored 183, finishing in equal 17th. The intense heat (in the high 90s) and gusting winds did not help the shooters. Boden, though, was not happy about some of the organisation at the purpose-built Prado Shooting Range. He had now been to three major North American competitions and had found that the organisation is nothing like the events that are held in Europe and other countries. But he put the blame firmly on the international governing body for not making sure everything was done correctly. He was particularly concerned with the way some of the traps were not in the correct positions. On one trap he scored 74 from 75, but on others, his form suddenly dipped. He also couldn’t understand why cars were driving so close to the shooting area. But he conceded that they do things their own way on this side of the Atlantic, but it’s not the proper way. Italian Luciano Giovannetti won gold with 192 after a shoot-off with Peruvian Francisco Boza (silver) and American Daniel Carlisle (bronze).Coventry Evening Telegraph - 1st August - 1984 - page 20
In the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, Boden started well at the Wolf Creek Shooting Ground, about 20 miles outside of Atlanta. On the first day he missed only one target out of 75. This left him in joint-fourth position, with six others, including the eventual gold medal winner. On the last day he hit 47 from 50 (24 and 23), giving him a final total of 121 from 125. But those three missed targets on the final day moved him out of medal contention, and he finished 9th. However, this was Boden’s best Olympic result, bettering his 1984 Los Angeles position of 14th. His teammate, Kevin Gill, came 37th with a score of 117. Australian Michael Diamond took the gold medal with a score of 149 from 150. 58 competitors took part.Bedworth Echo - 25th July - 1996 - Page 36
Following the quota place debacle, Boden finally arrived at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.The GB clay shooting team did not make use of the crowded Olympic Village. In advance they had decided to rent a house nearer to the Sydney International Shooting Centre at Cecil Park.The Field Magazine - 1st Sept - 2000 - Page 71. This was so they could be totally focused on the job in hand—winning medals. Boden was approaching his 53rd Birthday during the games, so he knew that Sydney might well be his Olympic swansong. Consequently, every ounce of concentration was needed. However, it didn’t start well for him, as he hit only 63 from 75 on the first day. He fared slightly better on the second day, shooting 45 from 50. His final score of 108 was a great disappointment, finishing down in joint 26th place. Meanwhile, teammate Ian Peel did Great Britain proud by taking the silver medal with a score of 142 (118+24) from 150—five targets behind gold medallist, Australian Michael Diamond. Another proud Brit was Double Trap shooter Richard Faulds MBE, who came from behind to take gold following a tense shoot-off with Australian Russell Mark after they finished level on 187 from 200.
Commonwealth Games By 1982, Boden had risen to the top of British Olympic Trap shooting, and it was no surprise he gained selection to represent England at the Commonwealth Games in Brisbane. After missing out on the Moscow Olympics in 1980, he was glad to be involved in such a major event again. Along with teammate Peter Croft, he was in strong contention for medals, but they were under no illusions about the fierce challenge from the Australians, who would be difficult to overcome on their own patch. First up was the team event over 200 targets. The Australian team of Terry Rumbel and Jim Ellis won gold with a score of 190, finishing four targets clear of England. Croft scoring 94 and Boden 92. For Boden, it was a disappointing performance; his score was well below his usual standard, but at least he had won a silver medal.Coventry Evening Telegraph - 2nd October 1982 - Page 16 However, in the individual competition, Boden fared much better. Going into the final round of 25, he was in with a chance, trailing Rumbel by just two targets. Ultimately, the pressure told on the Australian at the windy Belmont Range; he dropped three targets, to finish on 190. Boden did not falter, and shooting a perfect 25-straight he took gold by a solitary target with a score of 191. Croft shot 24 in the final round to take bronze on 190—the same score as Rumbel—but missed out on silver due to the countback rule.Sandwell Evening Telegraph - 6th October - 1982 - Page28Birmingham Mail - 6th October - 1982 - Page 36
In 1986, Boden was once again representing England at the Commonwealth Games. It was closer to home this time, taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. He again came away with two medals, just as he had done in Australia four years earlier. However, this time the medals were reversed; taking individual silver and the team (pairs) gold. During the 200-target team competition at Kippen Gun Club, Stirling, 40 miles from Edinburgh, Boden was not at his best.Coventry Evening Telegraph - 26th July - 1986 - Page 26 Luckily, his teammate Ian Peel was in magnificent form, shooting 98 from his 100 targets. Even though Boden only hit 87, their combined score of 185 was enough to edge out Northern Ireland and Australia, who both finished on 183.Liverpool Daily Post - 26th July - 1986 - Page 28 In the individual event, Boden returned to his best form. After day one, he found himself in fifth place, three behind the leader, forcing him to draw on all his vast experience to secure the silver. It ultimately came down to a shoot-off against Welshman Roland Rees-Phillips, after they finished level on 192. Boden hit a flawless 25-straight, while Rees-Phillips could only manage 23. Meanwhile, Ian Peel continued his top-class form to win the gold medal with a score of 195, securing a double gold for the 28-year-old.South Wales Echo - 30th July - 1986 - Page 26Coventry Evening Telegraph - 30th July - 1986 - Page 28
World Championship At the 1981 World Olympic Trap Championships, Boden came away with a bronze team medal at the San Miguel de Tucuman Shooting Range, in Argentina. His GB teammates included: Peter Croft, James Young and John Tennison. Croft was the highest placed British shooter on 193.
In November 1991, Boden picked-up three medals at the World Championships in Perth, Australia. He became the Individual World Champion at Double Trap, scoring a total of 173, two targets ahead of American, Bret Erickson. He then won the team gold medal; also in Double Trap with GB teammates, Peter Croft and Kevin Gill. Boden and his two teammates also picked-up the silver medal in the Olympic Trap competition. Boden was the top British shooter on 191.
British Olympic Trap Grand Prix - Five-times winner In August 1975, at the North Wales Shooting School, near Chester, Boden won his first major national title. He won the coveted Rolex Olympic Trap British Grand Prix, after a shoot-off with rival, John Tennison. They had finished level on 192 after two days of shooting.Chester Observer - 15th August 1975 - Page 2
Boden next won in 1980. In another shoot-off, he defeated Canadian, Edward Shaske, a former Olympian of the 1968 Summer Olympics.Liverpool Daily Post - 11th August 1980 - Page 5Chester Chronicle - 16th August 1980 - Page 13
In 1981, Boden had to settle for second place at the Grand Prix with a score of 189. He was two targets behind Dutchman, Bean van Limbeek.Liverpool Daily Post - 10th August 1981 - Page 7