It always pays to give it a shot and that’s what Levin shooter Ryan Taylor has done with regard to his omission from the New Zealand team when chasing his Olympic dream.
Taylor might be heading to the London 2012 Games after he became the first person in a century to successfully appeal an exclusion from the New Zealand team.
He qualified – twice – for the 2012 Olympics in four separate world cup events over the past year but was left out of the New Zealand team by the NZ Olympic Committee as they felt he would not claim a top 16 spot.
Taylor then lodged an appeal with the New Zealand Olympic Committee and in a decision this afternoon, The Sports Tribunal of New Zealand said he had successfully appeals his non-selection.
The 32-year-old 50m rifle prone shooter’s inclusion means the position on the team previously occupied by Natalie Rooney in the women’s shotgun trap shoot, and has since had her position revoked.
The decision to support the appeal was made after New Zealand Olympic Committee selectors sought and analysed information additional to that originally supplied by Shooting New Zealand in relation to Mr Taylor’s rankings and performance in the Olympic field. In a release, the NCOC says this ‘work by the selectors was undertaken following indications the information initially supplied was insufficient and contained some errors’.
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