CZ Yearbook 2019 /eng

56 | | 57 For shooters, the United States is the Promised Land. How did you get into sport shooting? In your wife’s family, sport shoot- ing was already pursued by her grandparents. Have you also been influenced by your family where shooting is concerned? What you say about the USA is certainly quite true but it de- pends on the kind of shooting. For example, the Olympic dis- ciplines are not as well-known there as they are here in the Czech Republic. I grew up in a family where every male was a hunter. I have always enjoyed shooting so I am a hunter too. Collaboration with CZ is a great honour for me An interview with Matthew Emmons on his journey to sport shooting and on the new CZ 457 rimfire rifle series. Matthew Emmons (b. 1981), an Olympic medallist and World Champion in rifle shooting has become the new face of the CZ 457 rimfire rifle series, together with his wife, Kateřina, herself a brilliant Czech shooter. The native American has lived and worked in the Czech Republic for many years and has adopted this country as his homeland to such an extent that he conducted this interview in the Czech language. But I never really knew that shooting couldbe a sport aswell. I got into sport shooting by ac- cident. One of my dad’s mates told us that some colleges in the States have shooting teams and grant scholarships. He asked me if I liked shooting, I said yes and so I began. He taught me the basics and then he found a club for me about an hour’s drive away from where I lived. That’s where I started training. So, the original motive was that I enjoyed it and I wanted to get that scholarship. The Olympics didn’t come into it then. Do you remember your first gun? Not really, no. It was probably an air rifle of some kind. But I do remember my first rimfire rifle – a Marlin Model 60 semi-auto- matic. It used tobemy grandpa’s, so I was able to use it too. I must have been about six or seven. Later, you achieved superb results with a rimfire rifle at Olympic Games. Did you con- sider switching to a different discipline, like skeet? Of course! If I was to have a choice again, I would definite- ly go for skeet. Or archery. Both are great fun, but not when it’s pouring. (laughing) WeaskedKateřinaabout the fu- ture shootingprospects regard- ing your children. Wewould like to ask you the same: will any of thembecome a shooting hope- ful and then a champion like their parents? That’s a very good question. Our aim is to teach all the kids to shoot and to understand guns, which has a lot to do with safety. If they want to compete that’s fine withme but I hope they will take up a different sport. Maybe golf, biathlon or baseball... We would like our children to en- joy playing and try out various sports and commit to none of them fully until they are at least 14 or 15. Saying that, I hope that at least one of them will share my love of hunting. In 2019 you and your wife will help promote the new CZ 457 rimfire rifle series. How do you feel about this project? I am very happy to be working with Česká zbrojovka and taking part in this project. The new CZ rimfire rifle is very well thought- out. I see great potential in it and quite a few opportunities. Both me and Katka are honoured to be working with a Czech compa- ny that has such a long history of making excellent guns. In your opinion, what are the biggest benefits of the CZ 457 series? I really like the new CZ 457 a lot. I like things that are sim- ple yet work very well. Its bolt and trigger are outstanding – very smooth and refined. And having the option to change the barrel and calibre is ideal. One can use the same gun at a shooting range as well as when out hunting, provided the coun- try’s law permits it. All you need to do is change the barrel and the stock, which takes about 5 minutes. It is very important for a gun to fit the hand nicely, it must be comfortable and shoot well. The CZ 457 has definitely made the grade. Have you had an opportunity to use or try some CZ guns before? Regrettably, I have very little per- sonal experience with CZ guns. One of my close friends in the States is a police officer and car- ries a CZ 75. I haven’t shot with it but at least I have held it in my hands. It is a beautiful pistol and he swears by it. Also, I know a few people from various parts of the world who used some old types of CZ rimfire rifles, I don’t remember the exact models they had. They were sport shoot- ers, or let’s say hobby shooters, and they all spoke very highly of their guns. Then I also have friends both in theUS andCzech who hunt and who use the CZ 550 or CZ 557 rifles. I have never heard them say anything neg- ative about them. They all say that they are very good quality rifles which shoot well. I certainly hope that I will have an oppor- tunity in the future to gain some new experience with CZ guns. Česká zbrojovka make a wide range of firearms, from those for armed forces to those for hunting and sport shooting. Which one do you think you would relate to the most? And which one do you think would Kateřina choose? Hmmm…. Goodquestion... I think I would go for a hunting rifle, so it would have to be the CZ 557. And I think Katka would def initely pick the CZ 457 rimfire rifle for sport shooting, so that would be the MTRmodel at themoment. You have lived in the Czech Re- public for a number of years, your wife is a top shooter. How would you rate the standard of sport shooting in the Czech Republic? Do you think Czech shooters have access to high quality guns? When we take into account the size of the country, then on the whole, the standard of shooting is good. Ingeneral, the conditions for training are very good – at least where sport shooting is con- cerned, there is a system of state assistance to clubs that is not so common in other countries. And yes, Czech shooters can use excellent guns. In this respect, both the best of them and the hopefuls are looked after very well. But shooting is a very ex- pensive sport and personally, I think that with some slight modifications, especially where accessories are concerned, the newCZ 457 couldmake an ideal gun for those who are starting with sport shooting and who want to get to a quality rifle.