Melbourne 1956 Olympics: Caviar On Our Faces

by
posted on July 1, 2021
1956-melbourne1-1.jpg

The below is an excerpt from the 1978 book, Olympic Shooting, written by Col. Jim Crossman and published by the NRA.

1956—Melbourne: Caviar On Our Faces
By Colonel Jim Crossman

The 1956 Olympics can be summed up in one name—Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The one topic of conversation at Melbourne was the Soviets. In their second entry in post-World War II Olympics, they had gone about winning with ruthless efficiency. Not content with the four medals of 1952, in Australia in 1956 they won three firsts, fours seconds and one third, while the United States had to be content with a lonely bronze medal.

With the Games scheduled for the Spring in Melbourne, November and December that is, the shooting committees were faced with the problem of just when and how to conduct the tryouts. It was finally decided to hold preliminaries, semi-finals and final tryouts at Camp Perry, Ohio, in conjunction with the National Matches. For the previous few years the NRA Championship matches at Camp Perry had included some of the international events, not as part of the overall championship, but as a means of getting American shooters accustomed to the foreign conditions. Most U.S. shooters had never had a chance to see how these matches were conducted and this was a good chance to familiarize them. Although most of the shooters who entered these matches used inadequate equipment—the M1 rifle in the free rifle 300-meter 3-position match, for example—still and all, it was a good way of getting shooters interested in and accustomed to the different international courses. Although shot in improvised shelters and under less than ideal conditions, these matches did do considerable missionary work. They were continued at Camp Perry for several more years until adequate rangers were available elsewhere to hold U.S. international championships under the proper conditions.

The preliminaries, semi-finals and finals for the team were shot during the appropriate phases of the National Matches, held in the last half of August and first part of September. Following the tryouts, the team members had to practice on their own until the team assembled for the first time as a group in Los Angeles on November 5. Officials and shooters on the team were:

Shooting Team

  • Lt. Col. Emmet O. Swanson, USMCR, Captain, Minneapolis, Minn.
  • Lt. Col. Ellis Lea, USA, Coach, Falls Church, Va.

Rapid-Fire Pistol
  • John H. Beaumont, Jr., Honolulu, Hawaii
  • John C. Forman, Detroit, Mich.

Free Pistol
  • Huelet L. Benner, West Point, N.Y.
  • Offutt Pinion, Egg Harbor, N.J.

Smallbore Rifle
  • Arthur C. Jackson, Silver Spring, Md.
  • Verle F. Wright, Jr., Fort Wayne, Ind.

Free Rifle
  • James M. Smith, Ipswich, Mass.
  • Herbert B. Voelcker, Jr., Tonawanda, N.Y.


The team included some shooters with Olympic experience. Doc Swanson, team captain, was on the Olympic team of 1948 and 1952, along with Art Jackson and Joe Benner. Coach Ellis Lea was a tough competitor and experienced rifle and pistol shooter. Pistol shooter John Forman had started with the handgun in 1947 and had been given a lot of help by Harry Reeves. A member of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, Forman was no newcomer to international-style shooting, having been on U.S. teams in 1954 and 1955.

Like Forman, Offutt Pinion had started shooting while he was in the Navy. Like Forman, Pinion also gave much credit to Harry Reeves for his fine instruction. Joe Benner also gave Pinion much help, especially with the free pistol. Although Pinion had shot extensively and successfully with Navy teams, this was his first international team. He showed his strength by being high man at each stage of the tryouts, preliminary, semi-final and final.

Read Part 2 of our look back at the Melbourne 1956 Olympics. Be sure to subscribe to the free Insider newsletter for the latest updates.

Melbourne Cricket Grounds, 1956 Olympics

Photo: The 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympics opening ceremonies at the Melbourne Cricket Grounds. Photo courtesy Melbourne Cricket Grounds.


Read more: Helsinki 1952 Olympics: The Soviet Shooters Arrive

Latest

RCBS Matchmaster 1
RCBS Matchmaster 1

RCBS Expanding MatchMaster Lineup With 12 New Cartridge Offerings

RCBS is adding 12 cartridge options to its MatchMaster bullet seating die lineup that will be available in early 2025.

What’s In Your Range Bag, Madison Champion?

U.S. Paralympic air rifle competitor Madison Champion captured gold and silver medals at the 2019 Junior Olympic Nationals. She also competed with her Walther LG 300 Alutec air rifle at the 2023 Parapan American Games.

Breakthrough Year For Competition Shooting: 1963 National Matches

The 1963 NRA National Matches featured several milestones, including Gail Liberty successfully defending the women’s pistol title and Bill Blankenship landing a fourth consecutive national pistol championship.

A Survival Guide For USPSA Range Officers

A new USPSA shooting season is right around the corner. Here’s a primer for rookie Range Officers that plan to work long matches in 2025.

Precision Defense: Rimfire Raceguns To The Extreme

All about Precision Defense, the Lancaster, Ohio, builder of 2011-pattern rimfire raceguns chambered in .22 Long Rifle.

USA Clay Target League Participation Reaches 53,250 Student-Athletes In 2024

More than 14,000 new high school and college students took part in USA Clay Target League activities in 2024, many of them taking their first steps into clay target shooting sports.

Interests



Get the best of Shooting Sports USA delivered to your inbox.