A young Yarra Valley shooter has shown off her skills to the rest of the state at the recent 2025 Victorian State Trap Carnival in Echuca hosted by the Victorian Clay Target Association (VCTA).
14-year-old Lilydale High School student and Melbourne Gun Club junior member Chloe Hughes-Gage finished first in an astonishing five categories at the event.
Chloe said it was just a really good weekend and she was feeling lucky.
“I went into the event knowing that I would be up against some pretty good competition, but I guess things just happened to be on the right side,” she said.
“I was really in my zone when I was shooting.”
Chloe’s luck seemed to be accompanied by plenty of skill too as she claimed the titles of overall Ladies State Single Barrel Champion (total score of 46/50), C-grade Single Barrel Champion (46/50), Sub Junior Single Barrel Champion (46/50), C-grade Double Barrel Champion (50/52) and C-grade Champion of Champions (120/125).
Chloe said she started shooting in high school after her older brother went through the school’s program.
“I looked forward to joining that when I got into high school, the way I got to the championships was mostly because my brother had made the Victorian team last year, and I didn’t get to participate in that event but I did this year,” she said.
“I know he (her older brother) will always help me if I have any questions, I’m sure he’d be able to answer them for me, so he always helps me out.
“I hope one day to get into the Victorian team for a discipline, and maybe even one day, one of my biggest goals, is shooting for Australia.”
“The first thing I’d say (to anyone interested in shooting) is to give everything a crack… it’s a great sport and a great community and although you may have ups and downs with it, just never give up.”
Chloe signed up as a member at the Melbourne Gun Club last year and practices at the range on Wednesdays, some Fridays and has started shooting in competitions on Saturdays after an ankle injury ruled her out of netball.
Both the Melbourne Gun Club and Lilydale High School congratulated Chloe on her achievements on Facebook.
