A Royal Marine from Swindon has been honoured by King Charles for his marksmanship skills.
Sergeant Tom Hughes headed to Windsor Castle to receive the King’s Medal from His Majesty after being recognised as Champion Shot of the Royal Navy and Royal Marines.
The 34-year-old serves with 42 Commando Royal Marines, which is based at Bickleigh, near Plymouth.
Tom’s partner Daniella and father John – who is a Royal Navy veteran and contemporary of His Majesty in the Senior Service as both served in the mid-1970s – joined the green beret on his special day.
In a private ceremony, His Majesty presented the first marksmanship medals of his reign to Tom alongside Lance Corporal Thapa (1 Battalion Royal Gurkha Rifles) – who won the Army contest - and the RAF’s top shot Corporal Mitchel (No 1 AIDU).
Tom said: “It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The group had 15 minutes with The King, who took the time to talk individually with everyone.
“He was very knowledgeable on what we had done and also made clear he intended to maintain a direct link with the award in future years.”
The winner of the medal – which has been presented to the armed forces by the UK’s monarch since the reign of Queen Victoria – proves him or herself in a series of operational shooting competitions, sponsored by the Fleet Commander.
These tests of martial ability use the same service weapons that sailors and Royal Marines carry in action, with each element based on developing specific combat skills.
The advanced marksmanship training events are open to serving personnel of all ranks, rates and branches, and the competitive element is used to drive each participant to their highest levels of personal performance.
As Tom proved to be the best of the best in 2023, he was carried off the range as victor by his fellow competitors in an open sedan chair as part of a long-standing military tradition, ahead of the more formal presentation from His Majesty.
Commander Jon Sutcliff, the Royal Navy’s lead for delivering Operational Shooting Competitions and the King’s Medal process, said he was “immensely proud of Sgt Hughes and all the other personnel who participated in the competitions back in June”.
He added: “The level of skill increase we see across all trainees is fantastic and the medal gives a unique grand prize that motivates all to strive to win and be the best they can be."
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