Cyprus President Tassos Papadopoulos officially declared the opening of the 2007 World Shotgun Championships in Nicosia Sunday evening, which will offer five quotas for the Beijing Olympic Games next year.

Papadopoulos welcomed all athletes from 84 countries and regions, a record-breaking participation, to the eastern Mediterranean island and wished them good luck.

A total of 683 shooters will in the next seven days compete for five tickets to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, each for men's trap, men's skeet, men's double trap, women's trap and women's skeet.

General Secretary of the International Shooting Sport Federation Horst Schreiber has expressed his satisfaction over large turnout for the championships, which he did not expect.

China has sent 14 athletes, including two juniors, to the games.

Sun Shengwei, the head coach of Chinese team, told Xinhua News Agency that the competition in each category would be undoubtedly very fierce.

(Xinhua News Agency September 3, 2007)