Cyril Mackworth-Praed

With three medals, Cyril Mackworth-Praed was the most successful British marksman at the 1924 Olympics, an appropriate reward for the man who raised and led the Britain team for the Games. In addition to his gold medal and two silver medals, both of which were won after a shoot-off, Mackworth-Praed also placed fourth in the running deer, single shot, team event and eighth in the clay pigeon event. He made a second Olympic appearance 28 years later when he placed 11th out of the 14 entries in the individual clay pigeon event at Helsinki in 1952. Mackworth-Praed’s enthusiasm for the sport began at an early age and he was a member of the Eton Ashburton VIII from 1908 to 1910, captaining the team in his final year. Later in 1910 he was also captain of the Imperial Cadet team which went to Canada. After Eton, Mackworth-Praed went up to Trinity College, Cambridge and during the war he served with the Scots Guards. He was a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and the Royal Zoological Society and the author of several papers on African ornithology. As a wealthy stockbroker he was able to visit East Africa in pursuit of his hobby and on these expeditions he colleted for the British Museum. Cyril Mackworth-Praed reached the final of the King’s Hundred on six occasions between 1921 and 1938 and in the 1930’s he ended a long run of German successes by winning the unofficial World Clay Pigeon Shooting Championship in Berlin. In World War II, he commanded the Commando Training School in the Western Isles and was awarded an OBE for his services. Throughout his life he was a generous supporter of the National Rifle Association and was made a life member in May 1924.