OT - cleaning bores of target pistols

As of 2 days ago, I'm the proud owner of a 60's vintage Model 41 S&W .22 target pistol. I was looking for something to shoot occasionally that would use cheaper ammo than 9mm, and I fell in love with this gun. It had been used by a competion shooter (custom grips, etc.) and the action was really dirty, but the bores (5.5 in. barrel and 7.5 in. barrel), were mint. The gun shop owner swore up and down that the owner had probably never cleaned the bores because, "after it got to where it was hitting 10, he didn't clean it." He said, even after I had already bought the gun, that competition shooters didn't clean bores because it would deteriorate accuracy. I'm not a target shooter, but this seems contrary to everthing I know & have been taught. Has anyone ever heard this before? (By the way, both barrels shoot great) Thanks.