London 2012 Shooting: Britain's Peter Wilson wins men's double trap gold

World record holder Peter Wilson grabbed Great Britain's first Olympic shooting medal for 12 years on Thursday, winning gold in the men's double trap at the Royal Artillery Barracks.

In a see-saw contest Sweden's Hakan Dahlby took silver and Russia's Vasily Mosin won bronze after a shoot-off against Fehaid al-Deehani of Kuwait.

Towering 25-year-old crack shot Wilson -- who only took up shooting in 2006 after damaging his shoulder in a snowboarding accident -- qualified in first place for the final with 143 hits out of 150.

In the final, involving a further 50 targets, Mosin put huge pressure on Wilson but the red-capped Briton, standing six feet six inches (1.98m) tall, held his nerve to hit 45 targets and claim gold.

After a bright and breezy morning at the Royal Artillery Barracks the rain hammered down but the sun returned for the final, in which every shot by Wilson was cheered by the packed stand, including the watching Princess Anne.

Wilson is the first medallist in shooting for Britain since Sydney in 2000 when Richard Faulds, who failed to make the final on Thursday, won gold in the same event. Britain also won a silver that year in men's trap.

Wilson is coached by Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum, a member of Dubai's royal family, who won the event at the Athens Games in 2004.

In double trap, two targets are released simultaneously from trap machines, travelling at different heights and angles. A round consists of 25 doubles. The shooters fire one shot at each target.

After the qualification round the top six competitors advance to the finals. Medals are awarded based on the sum of scores from the qualification and the finals.

After six days of shooting competition China, the United States and South Korea lead the way on two golds apiece. China have won the most medals overall.