What Guns do Olympic Trap Shooters Use?

Probably by far the biggest gun that Olympic trap shooters use is Perazzi. Without question, the family has prided itself on totally dedicating itself to the Olympics and Olympic shotguns, as has everybody who works in the Perazzi factory. In fact, some of its most famous shotgun models have been named for Olympic Games – the MX8 was introduced for the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, and the MT6 came out in time for the Montreal Games of 1976.

Going back into the records, you’ll see that Perazzi outpaces other brands in terms of gold medals for trap shooting. Australia’s Michael Diamond won back to back golds in 1996 and 2000, and then shooters from Russia, the Czech Republic, and Croatia won gold with Perazzi in the subsequent three Olympics.

Beretta broke through in 2016 when Josip Glasnovic used a DT11 to win gold, and Jiri Liptak of the Czech Republic also used the DT11 when he won in 2020.

Going forward I look for those two brands to remain at the top, in no small part because bunker trap is so popular in Italy, home to both companies. That’s not to say that other brands aren’t capable of winning. American Derrick Mein has had great success with his Kolar in recent years, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him on the podium.