Amber Rutter

Amber Rutter
Personal information
Birth nameAmber Jo Hill
Full nameAmber Jo Rutter
National teamGreat Britain
Born (1997-08-21) 21 August 1997 (age 27)
Windsor, Berkshire, England
Height1.57 m (5 ft 2 in)
SpouseJames Rutter
Sport
CountryUnited Kingdom
SportShooting
EventSkeet (SK75)
ClubE.J. Churchill Shooting Ground[1]
Coached byJoe Neville[1]
Medal record
Women's shooting
Representing  Great Britain
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2024 Paris Skeet
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2014 Granada Team skeet
Gold medal – first place 2022 Osijek Mixed team skeet
Silver medal – second place 2013 Peru Team skeet
Silver medal – second place 2022 Osijek Skeet
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Baku Mixed team skeet
European Games
Gold medal – first place 2015 Baku Skeet
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Kraków-Małopolska Mixed team skeet
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 2022 Larnaca Skeet
Gold medal – first place 2022 Larnaca Mixed team skeet
Gold medal – first place 2022 Larnaca Team skeet
Gold medal – first place 2023 Osijek Mixed team skeet
Silver medal – second place 2013 Suhl Team skeet
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Sarlóspuszta Team skeet
Bronze medal – third place 2015 Maribor Team skeet
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Lonato del Garda Mixed team skeet
Bronze medal – third place 2021 Osijek Skeet
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Osijek Skeet
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Osijek Team skeet
Representing  England
Commonwealth Games
Silver medal – second place 2018 Gold Coast Skeet
Commonwealth Championships
Gold medal – first place 2017 Brisbane Skeet

Amber Jo Rutter (née Hill, born 21 August 1997) is an English sport shooter who specialises in skeet. She has won a total of three gold medals in a major international competition, spanning the ISSF World Cup series (2013 and 2015), and the inaugural European Games held in Baku, Azerbaijan.[1] She also finished with a silver medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics in the women's skeet event.[2] A member of the GB team, Hill trains with her personal coach Joe Neville at E.J. Churchill Shooting Ground in Wycombe.[1][3] [4] Since her withdrawal from the 2020 Olympics, she has been active in promoting mental health in sport.[4][5]

Biography

Hill began shooting at the age of ten when she decided to go to the firing range in Binfield with the encouragement of her grandfather, Bill Rogers. Since then, she has taken part in small shooting competitions across Berkshire, earning numerous age group titles and records for shotgun. By the age of twelve, Hill had been selected to England's senior women's team with a speciality in skeet shooting.[3][6]

In 2013, Hill made shooting history by becoming the sport's youngest ever winner (aged 15) at the ISSF World Cup series. She prevailed over Italy's Diana Bacosi in a shoot-off 15 clays to 11 to secure a gold medal and establish a junior world record at her very first career attempt.[7][8] Because of her noteworthy success and talent in the sport, Hill finished the season as the top-ranked senior for Great Britain and the world ranked number five in the leaderboard. She had also been named the BBC's Young Sports Personality of the Year.[9]

At the 2015 European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan, Hill beat her Italian rival Bacosi in a lengthy, tense 30-clay shoot-off to claim the top spot on the podium in the women's skeet. By winning the gold on her senior international debut, Hill gained another Olympic quota place for Great Britain. A few months later she added another title to her career treasury at the World Cup Final in Nicosia, Cyprus, outclassing Thailand's Sutiya Jiewchaloemmit with a score of 15 to 13 hits.[10]

Amber Hill competed for Team GB's shooting squad in the women's skeet at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.[11] She was selected for England's Commonwealth Games squad bound for Australia in April 2018.[12] Hill was selected for Team GB's shooting squad in the women's skeet at the 2020 Summer Olympics, but had to withdraw after testing positive for COVID-19.[13][14][4]

In July 2022, Hill became the most successful Briton in ISSF World Cup events when she won the silver medal at the 2022 World Cup in Changwon, South Korea. This was her 11th World Cup medal surpassing the 10 of Richard Faulds.[15]

At the 2024 Olympics, she participated in the women's skeet event and finished in silver under controversial conditions. During the fourth round of a tiebreaking shoot-off with Francisca Crovetto, one of her shots was called a miss; however, upon slow motion review, replays showed that the shot hit the target.[2]

Personal life

In February 2023, Hill married motocross racer James Rutter. In October 2023, Rutter announced she was expecting her first child, a son named Tommy, in April 2024. It was reported in March 2024 that she still intended to compete at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris later in the year.[16][17]

References

  1. ^ a b c d "ISSF Profile – Amber Hill". ISSF. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  2. ^ a b "'Dream' silver for Rutter despite miss controversy". BBC. Retrieved 5 August 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Team GB Exclusive: Hill delighted to secure Rio spot". Team GB. 10 November 2015. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  4. ^ a b c Nick Hope (9 May 2023). "Amber Rutter: Overcoming anxiety and depression after Olympic heartache". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 9 May 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  5. ^ "GB shooter Amber Rutter on dealing with mental health" (Video). BBC Sport. 9 May 2023. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  6. ^ "Spotlight on Youth – From Berkshire to Rio de Janeiro, Amber Hill's journey of hope". ISSF. 23 March 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  7. ^ "15-year-old Hill of Great Britain wins the Skeet Women final, aiming at Rio 2016". ISSF. 22 March 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  8. ^ Williams, Ollie (16 September 2013). "Amber Hill: Sixteen-year-old British shotgun superstar". BBC Sport. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  9. ^ "Young Sports Personality: Shooter Amber Hill wins BBC award". BBC Sport. 15 December 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  10. ^ "Amber Hill is the 2015 Skeet Women Champion at the ISSF World Cup Final in Nicosia". ISSF. 17 October 2015. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  11. ^ "Six shooters selected to compete for Team GB at Rio 2016". Team GB. 10 November 2015. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
  12. ^ "Binfield shooter Amber Hill selected for England's Commonwealth Games squad – The Wokingham Paper". The Wokingham Paper. 7 December 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
  13. ^ "Tokyo Olympics: British medal hope Amber Hill withdraws after testing positive for Covid-19". BBC Sport. 21 July 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
  14. ^ Owen lloyd (21 July 2021). "Top-ranked skeet shooter Hill out of Tokyo 2020 Olympics with COVID-19". Inside the Games. Dunsar Media Company. Archived from the original on 21 July 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  15. ^ "Hill becomes most successful British shooter". BBC Sport. 18 July 2022. Archived from the original on 19 July 2022.
  16. ^ Laura Scott (26 March 2024). "Paris 2024: GB's Amber Rutter chasing Olympic shooting gold three months after baby's due date". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 26 March 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  17. ^ Courtney Hill (29 March 2024). "Heavily pregnant and ready for anything: Amber Rutter's race for Paris 2024". Olympics.com. Archived from the original on 29 March 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.