A Greek army sniper, who is considered among the top marksmen in Europe, revealed that although snipers from Greece are always among the best in international competitions, there was still room for improvement.
Dressed in his military attire with part of his face concealed behind a half-face balaclava, the top marksman shared some of the “trade secrets” with the viewers during an interview with a Greek TV station, adding, however, that he would not divulge all.
The soldier went on to explain how these highly skilled combatants could maximize their chance of a perfect shot from long-range, revealing that controlling breathing patterns was a crucial element of success.
“Accurate shots at 1500 meters are easily achievable. It always depends on the conditions. Nighttime can affect it, potentially reducing the range to 800 to 1000 meters, but it’s still a considerable distance to get the job done. Of course, I love my rifle. It requires a lot of study and a lot of attention.”
“Movies capture a significant aspect of reality. Patience is a virtue for a sniper. I won’t judge whether I’m among the best. The truth is that we [Greeks] achieved some good results, especially in the last two years, in two international competitions involving 25 countries and 45 teams. Last year, we had the first and fourth positions with two Greek teams, and this year, the fourth and fifth positions. So, things went well. We are happy about it, but there is always room for improvement,” he emphasized.
“The other element is adaptability. A sniper is alone and must decide who the clear target is. Depending on the mission, it’s not always the target; many times, it’s also the information,” he added, among other things.
Snippers are an integral part of modern military forces and are assigned with highly demanding and dangerous tasks including reconnaissance, intelligence gathering, and precision elimination of high-value targets.
