Wednesday, May 24, 2017

Hillsdale College Hosts Kim Rhode

Rhode visited with Hillsdale College Shooting Sports Team and toured the College's Shooting Sports Education Center

Rhode is the first Summer Olympian to win an individual medal at six consecutive Summer Games

HILLSDALE, Mich. – Six-time Olympic medalist and USA Shooting Team member Kim Rhode visited Hillsdale College on May 11. Rhode, the first summer Olympian to win six medals in six consecutive Olympic Games, met with Hillsdale's national championship-winning shotgun team.

Hillsdale College's Shooting Sports Team, which has won the last four Division III national titles in clay target shooting, performed a demonstration at the John A. Halter Shooting Sports Education Center, during which Rhode offered pointers and advice on shooting and the perseverance needed to achieve your dreams.

"Hillsdale is a fantastic place where everyone is likeminded—very much about the Constitution, very much about the Second Amendment and shooting and heritage sports," said Rhode. "It's a wonderful place for kids to go to college, learn about all of those things, and better themselves."

Rhode began her competitive career at the age of 10 and is now the most successful Olympic female shooter in history, amassing 14 national championship gold medals and 35 international medals.

Hillsdale's John A. Halter Shooting Sports Education Center is a 113-acre, state-of-the-art facility located five miles from campus. The Halter Center aims to cultivate an appreciation and increased understanding of shooting, introduce new people to the sport, and serve as a platform for courses at Hillsdale.

"The shooting sports facility is gorgeous," said Rhode. "One of the things that struck me was how open it is, how beautiful and well-maintained. I was blown away not only at the facility, but also at the future Hillsdale is making for the students and shooting sports."

Rhode's visit was sponsored by Winchester Ammunition, which has sponsored her for over 20 years. Winchester has generously donated the ammunition for the Hillsdale College Shotgun Team and other Hillsdale shooting range events for more than five years, including its Ladies for Liberty and Couples for Liberty camps.

About Hillsdale College
Hillsdale College, founded in 1844, has built a national reputation through its classical liberal arts core curriculum and its principled refusal to accept federal or state taxpayer subsidies, even indirectly in the form of student grants or loans. It also conducts an outreach effort promoting civil and religious liberty, including a free monthly speech digest, Imprimis, with a circulation of more than 3.6 million. More information is available at hillsdale.edu.

About the Hillsdale College Shooting Sports Program
Hillsdale College's John Anthony Halter Shooting Sports Education Center is a 113-acre state-of-the-art shooting facility located just five miles from campus. The facility features four American trap fields, a five-stand sporting clays field, a 20-station sporting clays course over 1.3 miles, a small arms range, an American/International skeet field, an International/Olympic bunker field, an outdoor Olympic archery range, and AcuSport Lodge. The center is home to Hillsdale's national champion shotgun team. Through the Halter Center, Hillsdale College aims to develop its competitive collegiate shotgun team, introduce new shooters to the sport, and promote interest in the shooting sports in general. Future plans include the construction of a 50-meter, no blue sky outdoor combination rifle and pistol range; an indoor Olympic air rifle, air pistol, and archery range; and cottages to accommodate overnight visitors.

For more information on the facilities, go to hillsdale.edu/about/facilities/shooting-sports-center.

For more information on summer shooting sports camps, go to hillsdale.edu/events/category/shooting-sports.

About Hillsdale College's Shotgun Team
Shotgun Team is a nationally recognized Division III competitive shooting sports team. The team recently won the Association of College Unions Internationals College Clay Targets Tournament (ACUI), Hillsdale's for the fifth time. The team trains at Hillsdale College's John Anthony Halter Shooting Sports Education Center.