The ISSF has made its first site visit for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, bringing healthy cooperation between our team and the LA28 Organising Committee.
ISSF Secretary General Alessandro Nicotra di San Giacomo led the delegation, supported by ISSF Senior Staff for IOC and NFs Relations, Doris Fischl; ISSF Sport Director Peter Underhill, ISSF Event Manager Jan Ketzel, ISSF Event Coordinator Roberta Cocozza di Montanara and ISSF Executive Assistant to the Secretary General, Eleonora Giustiniani.
On the opening day of the visit, they met with LA28 Chief of Games Delivery and Sport, Shana Ferguson, LA28 Vice President of Sports and two-time Olympic shooting sport champion Nicco Campriani, Director of Competition Management Jack Smith and Sport Manager Will Anti to lay out goals and expectations for shooting sport at LA28, with both sides sharing their ambition.
Ferguson expressed her thanks and appreciation to the ISSF for their cooperation with LA28 team, whose crew is young and open to innovation, promotion of sport and athletes.
Campriani mentioned the historical agreement on the presence of shooting sport in the Long Beach Zone together with 10 other sports has been fundamental. He also thanked Underhill for being a mentor to Will Anti and that this collaboration is helping the LA28 team a lot.
This was followed by technical meetings regarding workforce planning, sport delivery plan and testing and readiness, which reviewed the ISSF current philosophies and how both parties could capitalise on the delivery of the Games. These meetings were held with Senior Sport Planning Advisor Katy Dunnet, IF Services and Relations Manager Melissa Zhang, Sport Planning and Ops Manager Leah Bonga, as well as Sport Manager Will Anti.
ISSF Secretary General Alessandro Nicotra di San Giacomo led the delegation, supported by ISSF Senior Staff for IOC and NFs Relations, Doris Fischl; ISSF Sport Director Peter Underhill, ISSF Event Manager Jan Ketzel, ISSF Event Coordinator Roberta Cocozza di Montanara and ISSF Executive Assistant to the Secretary General, Eleonora Giustiniani.
On the opening day of the visit, they met with LA28 Chief of Games Delivery and Sport, Shana Ferguson, LA28 Vice President of Sports and two-time Olympic shooting sport champion Nicco Campriani, Director of Competition Management Jack Smith and Sport Manager Will Anti to lay out goals and expectations for shooting sport at LA28, with both sides sharing their ambition.
Ferguson expressed her thanks and appreciation to the ISSF for their cooperation with LA28 team, whose crew is young and open to innovation, promotion of sport and athletes.
Campriani mentioned the historical agreement on the presence of shooting sport in the Long Beach Zone together with 10 other sports has been fundamental. He also thanked Underhill for being a mentor to Will Anti and that this collaboration is helping the LA28 team a lot.
This was followed by technical meetings regarding workforce planning, sport delivery plan and testing and readiness, which reviewed the ISSF current philosophies and how both parties could capitalise on the delivery of the Games. These meetings were held with Senior Sport Planning Advisor Katy Dunnet, IF Services and Relations Manager Melissa Zhang, Sport Planning and Ops Manager Leah Bonga, as well as Sport Manager Will Anti.
The ISSF staff team, with LA28 Shooting Sport Sports Manager, Will AntiThey would then have meetings regarding medical requirements and procedures, sport equipment, security and arrivals and departures logistics and transportation.
On the second day, Anti and the ISSF staff visited Long Beach Target Shooting Hall in the morning, the host venue for rifle and pistol, before heading to Whittier Narrows Clay Shooting Center in the afternoon, which will host shotgun events.
The third and final day started with discussions over venue management and infrastructure, reviewing any improvements that could be made to the initial plans to meet operational needs. The ISSF team met with the venue delegation, led by LA28 Senior Managers for Venue Development, Jordan Stimmel and Aaron Jacobsen.
Updates were then given by those overseeing hospitality, ticketing and accommodation for the Olympic Games, ensuring that the ISSF's needs were met.
All staff met with Smith, Campriani and Anti for a final debrief, discussing the next steps for both parties and reviewing the sport's readiness.
Alessandro Nicotra di San Giacomo, ISSF Secretary General, said: "We are very enthusiastic about the plan for LA28 and our staff are fully committed to achieving the goals that we have set out with the Organising Committee.
"To be part of a vibrant hub of sport at the Long Beach Convention Center will be a fantastic opportunity for our sport, while the visit to Whittier Narrows Clay Shooting Center was fundamental for our operations team.
"It was also great to be joined by ISSF Vice-President Kimberly Rhode, who as an athlete, knows this range very well and provided important technical and operational feedback to our team."
"I can confidently say that this will be a great Olympic Games overall, and especially for shooting sport."
The ISSF team will continue to the SHOT Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, to conclude their visit to the United States.On the second day, Anti and the ISSF staff visited Long Beach Target Shooting Hall in the morning, the host venue for rifle and pistol, before heading to Whittier Narrows Clay Shooting Center in the afternoon, which will host shotgun events.
The third and final day started with discussions over venue management and infrastructure, reviewing any improvements that could be made to the initial plans to meet operational needs. The ISSF team met with the venue delegation, led by LA28 Senior Managers for Venue Development, Jordan Stimmel and Aaron Jacobsen.
Updates were then given by those overseeing hospitality, ticketing and accommodation for the Olympic Games, ensuring that the ISSF's needs were met.
All staff met with Smith, Campriani and Anti for a final debrief, discussing the next steps for both parties and reviewing the sport's readiness.
Alessandro Nicotra di San Giacomo, ISSF Secretary General, said: "We are very enthusiastic about the plan for LA28 and our staff are fully committed to achieving the goals that we have set out with the Organising Committee.
"To be part of a vibrant hub of sport at the Long Beach Convention Center will be a fantastic opportunity for our sport, while the visit to Whittier Narrows Clay Shooting Center was fundamental for our operations team.
"It was also great to be joined by ISSF Vice-President Kimberly Rhode, who as an athlete, knows this range very well and provided important technical and operational feedback to our team."
"I can confidently say that this will be a great Olympic Games overall, and especially for shooting sport."
There, they will meet with industry leaders to explore potential collaboration. The Secretary General, along with USA Shooting CEO and ISSF Executive Committee member Kelly Residorf, will also attend the Board meeting of the World Forum on Shooting Activities, which the ISSF is a member of.