Lones Wigger
Lones Wesley Wigger, Jr. (1937–2017) was an esteemed American competitive shooter, widely regarded as one of the greatest in the history of the sport. Born in Great Falls, Montana, he found his passion for shooting at a young age, quickly excelling in marksmanship and becoming a prominent figure in various shooting competitions. Wigger's career was marked by remarkable achievements, including participation in four Olympic Games, where he won three medals—two golds and one silver—and set numerous world and national records, totaling twenty-eight world records and 145 medals in international competitions.
After retiring from competitive shooting in 1987, Wigger dedicated himself to coaching, becoming the director of the U.S. shooting team at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. He influenced many young shooters, including his own children, and emphasized the importance of hard work and dedication in achieving success. Wigger's legacy continues through initiatives like the Lones Wigger Ironman Trophy and the Lones Wigger/USAS Junior Olympic Endowment, which support youth shooting programs. Through his accomplishments and mentorship, Wigger left an indelible mark on the sport of shooting and the athletes who followed in his footsteps.
Lones Wigger
- Born: August 25, 1937
- Birthplace: Great Falls, Montana
- Died: December 14, 2017
- Place of death: Colorado Springs, Colorado
Sport: Shooting
Early Life
Lones Wesley Wigger, Jr., was born on August 25, 1937, in Great Falls, Montana. As a child, Lones developed a love for sports, especially basketball and baseball. However, Lones was neither big nor fast as a child. Nevertheless, he wanted to compete. The Wigger family lived in Carter, Montana, a rural community without many organized activities for young boys. Therefore, when his father offered to take him shooting at the local range, eleven-year-old Wigger jumped at the chance. As his father watched Wigger shoot, he could not have known what was in store for his son: Wigger eventually became the most successful shooter in the history of the sport.
The Road to Excellence
Usually the first person to arrive and the last to leave, Wigger soon became a fixture at the shooting range. First, he learned to fire the small-bore .22-caliber rifle, then the larger .30-caliber rifle. He loved to shoot, and his skills grew along with his love for the sport. Wigger had finally found his niche.
With his father as a coach, Wigger became proficient enough to compete with the senior members of the Carter Gun Club. Wigger won his first medal at the age of twelve, shooting against older competitors. In fact, Wigger was the only child among the club members. Very often, the young man beat more experienced adults. Competing against better shooters forced Wigger to set high goals, a situation that prepared him for a lifetime of stiff competition.
As he entered high school, Wigger’s scores were the ones to beat. In 1955, as a seventeen-year-old, Wigger competed at the National Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio, and won his state’s championship. A year later, he became the top shooter at Montana State University, where he joined the Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) marksmanship team.
While competing for his ROTC team, Wigger caught the eye of Bill Krilling and Gary Anderson, champion shooters with the United States Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU). They could hardly wait for the Wigger to receive his U.S. Army commission; once on active duty, Wigger was eligible to shoot for the USAMU.
The Emerging Champion
In 1961, Lieutenant Lones Wigger was assigned to the USAMU, and his illustrious career took off. Within two years, he was on the Pan-American Games team, and in 1964, he made the U.S. Olympic team. At the 1964 Olympics, in Tokyo, Japan, he won a gold medal in the small-bore three-position event. He established a world record of 1,164 in that event, shattering the old record by 7 points.
Most athletes only hope to compete in the Olympics, and for the majority, winning a medal remains only a lifelong dream. For Wigger, the 1964 games were only the first of four in which he competed. He also made the 1968, 1972, and 1980 Olympic teams. He won a total of three Olympic medals, two golds and a silver.
For Wigger, success was measured in both excellence and longevity. Throughout a career that spanned nearly four decades, he set more national and world records than any Olympic competitor in history. He held twenty-eight world records, several hundred national records, and untold match records.
For more than twenty years, Wigger was the dominant competitor in the shooting sports. His most enduring accomplishment was winning twenty-two world championship gold medals, a feat that may never be equaled. Other accomplishments are also legendary. He competed in six Pan-American Games and won eighty national championships in various shooting events. At the World Shooting Championships in 1974, he set four world records in one day.
Continuing the Story
The enduring significance of this great career is easy to appreciate. He won 145 medals in international competition and set the standard for the world of shooting. Even after thirty-seven years as a competitor, however, he was not through with shooting. Wigger decided to contribute to his sport in a different way.
After retiring in 1987 from the Army as a lieutenant colonel, Wigger became the director of the U.S. shooting team at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. In his new position, he found himself in a familiar role as coach. For many years during his own competitive life, he had nurtured young men and women on their way to successful careers as competitors.
Wigger’s three children, Ronald, Danny, and Deena, each developed a passion for competitive shooting. Following closely in his father’s footsteps, Ronald shot on the USAMU. Deena became one of the United States’ most successful women shooters. In addition, more than a dozen of Wigger’s students competed for U.S. teams, and his Ft. Benning Junior Rifle Club was virtually unbeatable for ten years.
While many young competitors wanted to know the formula for his success, Wigger claimed his only secret was an appreciation of hard work. Vowing never to be outworked by his opponents, Wigger spent many thousands of hours shooting on the firing line, meticulously placing bullets through the same hole on a target.
In addition to preaching hard work as the main ingredient for training, Wigger encouraged his shooters to increase their intensity whenever they represent a team, whether their team was a local gun club or the U.S. team. Wigger always viewed his membership on U.S. shooting teams as added incentive to perform well.
Wigger died on December 14, 2017, at his home in Colorado Springs, of pancreatic cancer. He was eighty years old.
Summary
Lones Wigger was considered the greatest American shooter ever. Many people believe he was the greatest competitor ever, in any sport. His longevity, unequaled victory tally, and series of national and world records seem to support that claim. However, this personable man was most proud of his work with young shooters. He transformed his intense, competitive nature into a desire to mold young men and women into better shooters as well as better citizens. The National Rifle Association debuted the Lones Wigger Ironman Trophy in 2016, given to the individual with the highest score across all events in the National Smallbore Championships. In early 2017, the Lones Wigger/USAS Junior Olympic Endowment was established; the endowment provides funding for USA Shooting's youth programs.
Bibliography
“Father-Daughter Shooting Team.” Sports Illustrated 66, no. 13 (March 30, 1987): 83-86.
Litsky, Frank. "Lones Wigger Jr., ‘Best Ever’ Rifle Marksman, Is Dead at 80." The New York Times, 18 Dec. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/12/18/obituaries/lone-wigger-jr-dead-champion-rifle-shooter.html. Accessed 19 Apr. 2018.
Petzal, David E. "Lones Wigger Jr. (1937–2017)." Field & Stream, 26 Dec. 2017, www.fieldandstream.com/rifle-marksman-lones-wigger-jr-1937-2017. Accessed 19 Apr. 2018.
Rupp, J. Scott. "Lones W. Wigger, Jr.: A Legend Looks at 80." Rifle Shooter, 15 Dec. 2017, www.rifleshootermag.com/gun-culture/lones-w-wigger-jr-a-legend-looks-at-80/. Accessed 19 Apr. 2018.
Wallechinsky, David, and Jaime Loucky. The Complete Book of the Olympics: 2008 Edition. London: Aurum Press, 2008.