'I can't post about my sport on social media'

Ms Palmer-Jones says she struggles to get exposure without having an online profile

A British shooting champion says social media algorithms are stopping her promoting her sport online.

Courtney Palmer-Jones, 23, from Crawley, West Sussex, says her Instagram posts have been hidden, and non-followers cannot find her account, because it depicts the use of guns.

Ms Palmer-Jones is an aspiring Olympian and describes the restrictions as "a form of censorship".

The BBC has contacted TikTok and Meta, which owns Instagram, for comment.

As a sport, shooting has gained prominence at the OIympics with Nathan Hales, from Kent, winning gold in trap shooting and Amber Rutter securing silver in skeet.

Ms Palmer-Jones says her biggest form of exposure is through social media and it is vital for obtaining sponsorships and partnerships.

Without having an online profile, "you've never got new eyes on the sport and you've not got the opportunity to grow your audience," she said.

Ms Palmer-Jones says posts that show pictures of, or mention, rifles get flagged by Instagram, which then restricts her whole account, meaning her account is only visible to people who follow her.

She said she had appealed the restrictions, but with only limited success.

"Instagram say we could be potentially depicting violence or weapons, and that's simply not the case in a sporting environment," said Ms Palmer-Jones.

"It just feels like the algorithm isn't supporting us."

Courtney Palmer-Jones is an aspiring Olympian

A spokesperson from British Shooting said it was "aware of concerns" athletes had with content being blocked or banned on social media.

"We have also experienced the issue with content on our channels. We are working with Team GB to make TikTok and Instagram aware of the issue and find a solution," said the spokesperson.

“While we respect that social media companies have safeguarding policies in place to protect its users, target shooting sport is a safe and regulated sport for all and we are hopeful a positive outcome can be found."