View source for Matthew Emmons

{{short description|American Olympic sports shooter (born 1981)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2017}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| headercolor    =
| name           = Matthew Emmons
| image          = Matthew Emmons Athens 2004b-cr.jpg
| image_size     = <!--Only for images narrower than 220 pixels.-->
| caption        = Emmons at the 2004 Olympics
| birth_name     =
| fullname       =
| nickname       =
| native_name    =
| native_name_lang =
| nationality    = [[Americans|American]]
                   [[Czechs|Czech]]
| residence      =
| birth_date     = {{birth date and age|1981|4|5}}
| birth_place    = [[Mount Holly Township, New Jersey]], U.S.<ref name=sr>[https://web.archive.org/web/20200418062507/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/em/matt-emmons-1.html Matt Emmons]. sports-reference.com</ref>
| death_date     =
| death_place    =
| height         = 1.78 m<ref name=sr/>
| weight         = 85 kg<ref name=sr/>
| website        = <!-- {{URL|www.example.com}} -->
| country        = United States
| sport          = [[Shooting sports|Shooting]]
| event          = [[Rifle]]
| collegeteam    =
| universityteam =
| club           = Alaska Nanooks, Fairbanks<ref name=sr/>
| team           =
| turnedpro      =
| partner        =
| former_partner  =
| coach          =
| retired        =
| coaching       =
| worlds         =
| regionals      =
| nationals      =
| olympics       =
| paralympics    =
| highestranking =
| pb             =
| show-medals    = yes
| medaltemplates =
{{MedalCountry|the {{USA}}}}
{{MedalOlympic}}
{{MedalGold|[[Shooting at the 2004 Summer Olympics|2004 Athens]]|[[Shooting at the 2004 Summer Olympics - Men's 50 metre rifle prone|50&nbsp;m rifle prone]]}}
{{MedalSilver|[[Shooting at the 2008 Summer Olympics|2008 Beijing]]|[[Shooting at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's 50 metre rifle prone|50 m rifle prone]]}}
{{MedalBronze|[[Shooting at the 2012 Summer Olympics|2012 London]]|[[Shooting at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's 50 metre rifle three positions|50 m rifle three positions]]}}
{{MedalCompetition|[[ISSF World Shooting Championships|World Championships]]}}
{{MedalSilver|[[2018 ISSF World Shooting Championships|2018 Changwon]]|50 m team rifle prone}}
}}
'''Matthew D. Emmons''' (born April 5, 1981) is an American rifle [[Shooting sports|shooter]]. He competed in various events at the 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016 Olympics and won a gold, a silver, and a bronze medal.<ref name=sr/>

Since 2020 he has been the shooting coach of the Czech biathlon team.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.biatlon.cz/athlete/matthew-emmons/|title=Trenéři reprezentace {{!}} Matthew Emmons|date=2023|publisher=Czech biathlon|language=cs}}</ref>

==Career==
Emmons started out as a successful junior and has been a holder of the junior world record in [[50 metre rifle three positions]]. He won both the [[2002 ISSF World Cup Final]] and the [[2004 ISSF World Cup Final]] in this event.<ref name=bio/>

He was also successful in the [[50 metre rifle prone]], winning both the [[2002 ISSF World Shooting Championships]] and the [[Shooting at the 2004 Summer Olympics|2004 Summer Olympics]] in this event. In [[Athens]], he was very close to winning a historic double, but in the [[Shooting at the 2004 Summer Olympics - Men's 50 metre rifle three positions|three positions competition]], he accidentally cross-fired his last shot and finished eighth.<ref name=sr2>[https://web.archive.org/web/20200417181336/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/2004/SHO/mens-small-bore-rifle-three-positions-50-metres.html Shooting at the 2004 Athina Summer Games: Men's Small-Bore Rifle, Three Positions, 50 metres]. sports-reference.com</ref>

Emmons's gold medal at the [[Shooting at the 2004 Summer Olympics|2004 Summer Olympics]] in the [[50 metre rifle prone|prone position]] came while using a borrowed rifle. In April 2004, just prior to the Olympic Team Trials, Emmons discovered his rifle had been severely sabotaged in the supposedly secure locker room at the [[United States Olympic Training Center]].<ref name="juneauempire.com">[http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/082204/spo_shooting.shtml Emmons on target for gold | Juneau Empire – Alaska's Capital City Online Newspaper] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160623235850/http://juneauempire.com/stories/082204/spo_shooting.shtml |date=June 23, 2016 }}. Juneau Empire (August 22, 2004). Retrieved on April 10, 2017.</ref> The precisely tuned barrel and action were heavily damaged by what appeared to be a screwdriver.<ref name="juneauempire.com"/> "I unpacked my gun and I noticed that something wasn't right," Emmons said. "Sure enough, somebody had done something to it. I shot it and I couldn't get the shell out. I said, 'Something's wrong here'."<ref name="juneauempire.com"/> Emmons said it could not have been an accident: "Oh no, no," Emmons said. "Somebody took a screwdriver and went in."<ref name="juneauempire.com"/> Emmons went on to the [[Shooting at the 2004 Summer Olympics|2004 Summer Olympics]], and his gold medal in the [[50 metre rifle prone|prone position]] event, using his former [[University of Alaska Fairbanks]] teammate, Amber Darland's .22 rifle. He never found out who the saboteur was, but said "I'd like to know so I could shake their hand and say thanks."<ref name="juneauempire.com"/>

At the [[Shooting at the 2008 Summer Olympics|2008 Summer Olympics]], Emmons won the silver medal in the [[Shooting at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's 50 metre rifle prone|prone competition]]. In his second event, [[Shooting at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's 50 metre rifle three positions|50 metre rifle three positions]], Emmons finished the qualification round in second place, 1 point behind the leader. In the ten-shot final, Emmons overtook the leader after just the first shot. Over the next eight shots, Emmons extended his lead to 3.3 points. Then his 3.3 point lead vanished when he posted a 4.4 on his final shot. He finished off the podium in 4th place.

Emmons called the last shot a "freak of nature".<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080828231616/http://www.usashooting.org/viewRelease.php?id=186 Matt Emmons Places Fourth in Men's 3 Position Rifle]. USA Shooting (August 17, 2008). Retrieved on April 10, 2017.</ref> "The way I come into a target is I start above the target and come down from 12 o'clock and get into the bullseye", he told reporters. "And as I get down into the bullseye is when I start to get on the trigger (with my finger) and as I was starting to get on the trigger, the gun just went off. I guess I just set it off. I got on the trigger a little too hard. I didn't feel my trigger finger shaking but I guess it was. It just hit the trigger, the gun went off and I was like 'uh, that's not going to be good – I hope it hit the black'. It hit the black, but a little high".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/feedarticle/7731200 |location=London |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080822201905/http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/feedarticle/7731200 |archive-date=August 22, 2008 |title=shot lapse costs Emmons gold|work=Reuters via The Guardian|date=August 17, 2008 }}</ref>

At the [[Shooting at the 2012 Summer Olympics|2012 Summer Olympics]], Emmons won the bronze medal in the [[Shooting at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's 50 metre rifle three positions|three positions]].<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/london/shooting/story/2012-08-06/matt-emmons-bronze-after-bad-last-shot/56819178/1?csp=34sports |title=After another near-disaster, USA's Matt Emmons wins bronze|work=[[USA Today]]|date=August 6, 2012|access-date=August 6, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/olympics/19148063|title=Olympics shooting: Matt Emmons wins three-position rifle bronze |date=August 6, 2012|work=BBC}}</ref> He placed 19th in this event at the 2016 Games.<ref name=bio/>

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%"
!colspan=9 | Current world records held in [[50 metre rifle prone|50 m Rifle]] Prone
|-
| Men
{{Shooting WR FR60PR Men Qualification}}
|}

==Personal life==
Emmons has been a resident of [[Pemberton Township, New Jersey]].<ref>[http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=DN&s_site=philly&p_multi=PI|DN&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=122A4F8A05002AA8&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM "Oh, shoot, it happens again!"], ''[[Philadelphia Daily News]]'', August 18, 2003. Accessed March 1, 2011. "Matthew Emmons, a 27-year-old native of Mount Holly, N.J., yesterday relived his Athens nightmare. With a 3.4 point lead on the final shot of the final round of the 50-meter rifle/three positions, as he lowered his rifle into shooting position he shot too early and managed only a 4.4."</ref> He is a graduate of [[Pemberton Township High School]].<ref>Benevento, Don. [https://www.proquest.com/docview/1027719534/5B4BCD9E2FF74B2EPQ/2?accountid=196403&sourcetype=Newspapers "Carli Lloyd is looking to repeat the magic of 2008 in Beijing"], ''[[Courier-Post]]'', July 25, 2012. {{ProQuest|1027719534}}. "Thursday: Pemberton High School graduate Matthew Emmons goes for gold in shooting."</ref> He holds a degree in management and finance from the [[University of Alaska Fairbanks]] and is a graduate at the [[University of Colorado at Colorado Springs]], [[Colorado Springs, Colorado|Colorado Springs]].<ref name="juneauempire.com"/>

Emmons married Czech sport shooter and Olympic champion [[Kateřina Emmons|Kateřina Kůrková]] in [[Plzeň]], [[Czech Republic]], on June 30, 2007.<ref name=sr/><ref>[http://www.esc-shooting.org/ European Shooting Page]. Esc-shooting.org. Retrieved on April 10, 2017.</ref> They met at the 2004 Olympics in Athens when Kateřina came to console Matt after his gold medal blunder.<ref name=sr2/> They both live and train in Plzeň. They have four children, Julie (born 2009), Emma (born 2015), Martin and Gabriela.<ref name=bio>[http://www.usashooting.org/12-the-team/usashootingteam/nationalteam/nationalrifleteam/mattemmons Matt Emmons]. USA Shooting</ref> Emmons was diagnosed with [[thyroid cancer]] in 2010.<ref>[https://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/london/shooting/story/2012-07-25/shooting-Matt-Emmons-USA/56485684/1 USA shooter Matt Emmons deals with misses]. Usatoday.com (July 25, 2012). Retrieved on April 10, 2017.</ref><ref>[https://www.idnes.cz/sport/ostatni/katerina-emmons-strelba-kariera-rodina-matt-emmons-rozhovor.A210305_120758_sporty_lisv Vystřílela jsem si zlato i manžela. Kateřina Emmons a její zpověď]</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Matthew Emmons}}
* {{Sports links}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070927225217/http://www.issfnews.com/shooters/whoiswho.asp?event=&wiwmode=namenat&shtrid=18712 Emmons's profile at ISSF NEWS]

{{Olympic Champions Shooting FR60PR}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Emmons, Matthew}}
[[Category:People from Pemberton Township, New Jersey]]
[[Category:1981 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American male sport shooters]]
[[Category:Shooters at the 2004 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Shooters at the 2008 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Shooters at the 2012 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Shooters at the 2016 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States in shooting]]
[[Category:Olympic silver medalists for the United States in shooting]]
[[Category:Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in shooting]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Mount Holly, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Pemberton Township High School alumni]]
[[Category:ISSF rifle shooters]]
[[Category:World record holders in shooting]]
[[Category:Alaska Nanooks rifle shooters]]
[[Category:University of Colorado alumni]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:American expatriate sportspeople in the Czech Republic]]
[[Category:Shooters at the 1999 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1999 Pan American Games]]
[[Category:Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in shooting]]
[[Category:21st-century American sportsmen]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]