Matthew Emmons

Career Emmons started out as a successful junior and has been a holder of the junior world record in 50 metre rifle three positions. He won both the 2002 ISSF World Cup Final and the 2004 ISSF World Cup Final in this event.

Emmons's gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in the prone position came while using a borrowed rifle. In April 2004, just prior to the Olympic Team Trials, Emmons discovered his rifle had been severely sabotaged in the supposedly secure locker room at the United States Olympic Training Center. The precisely tuned barrel and action were heavily damaged by what appeared to be a screwdriver. "The way I come into a target is I start above the target and come down from 12 o'clock and get into the bullseye", he told reporters. "And as I get down into the bullseye is when I start to get on the trigger (with my finger) and as I was starting to get on the trigger, the gun just went off. I guess I just set it off. I got on the trigger a little too hard. I didn't feel my trigger finger shaking but I guess it was. It just hit the trigger, the gun went off and I was like 'uh, that's not going to be good – I hope it hit the black'. It hit the black, but a little high".

At the 2012 Summer Olympics, Emmons won the bronze medal in the three positions. He placed 19th in this event at the 2016 Games. He is a graduate of Pemberton Township High School. He holds a degree in management and finance from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and is a graduate at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs. They met at the 2004 Olympics in Athens when Kateřina came to console Matt after his gold medal blunder. Emmons was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2010.