Team USA: Caitlin Connor Receives Olympic Committee Honors

by
posted on October 24, 2018
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
cait-connor-septaward2.jpg
The U.S. Olympic Committee has a monthly Best Of” award, and thanks to her outstanding performance at the 2018 ISSF World Championships in South Korea, skeet shooter Caitlin Connor won the Best of September female athlete for Team USA. She received a very respectable 30 percent of the vote.

Kim Rhode and Caitlin Connor | 2018 ISSF World Championships, South Korea
Kim Rhode and Caitlin Connor fist bump at the 2018 ISSF World Championships in Changwon, South Korea.

At the ISSF World Championships in Changwon, South Korea, Connor won her very-first gold medal after defeating teammate (and shooting mentor) Kim Rhode in the final by a lone clay. They were tied going in to the last station during the final. The win marked the fourth consecutive womens skeet championship won by a U.S. shooter.

In a USA Shooting press release, Connor said, “I was pretty emotional during that final because I’ve never had the feeling during a final that I was going to win and the whole time I thought ‘I’m going to win this thing!’ I wanted to cry after my third pass through! I just kept thinking ‘Stay strong, focus on what you’re doing, and it will be fine.’”

Caitlin Connor, Kim Rhode and Amber English | 2018 ISSF World Championship, Korea
Caitlin Connor, Kim Rhode (l.) and Amber English on the podium at the ISSF World Championships in South Korea. The last time Team USA swept an open World Championship was in 1974.

Connor, age 27 and a native of Winnfield, LA, is the first woman shooter recognized for a monthly Team USA Best of award since the format was revised. Each Olympic discipline NGB (National Governing Body) nominates three athlete(s) each month: one man, one woman and one team nominee. The coolest part about the Team USA monthly honors is that 50 percent of the final tally is determined by fans voting online. NGB officials and the media provide the other 50 percent of the votes.

Below are the four other athletes that were nominated for the September 2018 Team USA Female Athlete of the Month, along with their share of the votes cast:

1.  Laura Graves (Equestrian), 26 percent
2.  Allysa Seely (Paratriathlon), 17 percent
3.  Rebecca Hart (Para-equestrian), 15 percent
4.  Katie Zaferes (Triathlon), 13 percent

Photos courtesy of USA Shooting


More Team USA coverage:

•  ISSF World Championship: Vincent Hancock Wins Record 4th Men’s Skeet Title
•  Kim Rhode Elected ISSF Athletes Committee Chair
•  ISSF World Cup: Cogdell-Unrein, Wallace Win Trap Mixed Team Gold
•  Junior World Cup Germany: Morgan Phillips Continues Hot Streak, Wins 3-P Silver Medal
•  Kim Rhode Continues To Shine
•  At The Top Of Her Game, Rachel Martin Aims For International Stage

Latest

USPSA Accuracyspeaks 1
USPSA Accuracyspeaks 1

Accuracy Speaks: The On-Site Gunsmith Keeping Competitors in the Fight at Rio Salado

Bob LaMarca of Accuracy Speaks provides free on-site gunsmithing to competitors at Rio Salado Sportsman’s Club, delivering extraordinary service when it matters most.

The Revolver Ambassador: How David Rotigel Became the World’s Top Steel Challenge OSR Shooter

David “DJ” Rotigel shares how he became the No. 1 OSR Steel Challenge shooter and why growing the revolver community drives him.

Connor Daniel Leads Team Winchester and White Flyer Sweep of Seminole Cup Main Event Podium

Team Winchester and Team White Flyer sweep Main Event podium at 2026 Seminole Cup, Connor Daniel wins HOA and Desi Edmunds takes Lady champion honor.

2025 IPSC World Shoot: Team USA on the World Stage

Christian Sailer won gold by 136 points at the 2025 IPSC World Shoot in South Africa as Team USA medaled across all divisions.

Mount Aloysius Defends MAC Championship Title as Two Mollys Steal the Show

Mount Aloysius College defends MAC championship title with 4558 aggregate as Schreiner’s Molly Mitchell and Mounties’ Molly Miller split conference’s top individual honors.

New: Fix It Sticks Armorer’s Punch Toolkit

Fix It Sticks pairs a new magnetic-socket hammer with 24 punches in a portable kit aimed at competition shooters, armorers and gunsmiths who work on guns away from the bench.



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