After competing in a second straight Olympic Games, U.S. Olympic shooters are pondering the future of the sport.
Mary Tucker, a Florida native who now lives in the Czech Republic, has qualified to represent the U.S. National Team in the women’s air small bore rifle event at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
“It’s great to come from a country that takes so much pride in sports,” Tucker told Fox News Digital. “I always say I love playing for the United States because they’re one of the powerhouses in sports, and that’s true when it comes to most things, especially sports.”
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West Virginia University graduate Mary Tucker competed in the 2024 Paris Olympics. (Zhu Huanzong/Xinhua News Agency; Fred Lee)
Tucker competed in three positions in the women’s 50-meter rifle on Aug. 1 and finished in 25th place with 579 points.
Sagen Maddalena of the US team came in first place, advanced to the final round and won the silver medal.
“My career isn’t over yet,” Tucker said. “In my opinion, I still have time.”
Tucker, who won a silver medal at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, is expected to see a surge in shooting viewership for the 2024 Olympics but has concerns about the future of the sport.
“There is always a debate [shooting] “Shooting will be removed from the Olympics,” she said. “That’s a question that’s always looming. I think it’s important for people, especially sports fans, to realize that sport shooting is quite different from other types of shooting.”
Tucker said that although the basic principles are similar, “it’s a very safe sport.”
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Mary Tucker won a silver medal for Team USA at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
The West Virginia University graduate plans to focus her efforts in the near future on increasing youth participation, but she also hopes the IOC and other associations and federations will continue to fight for sport shooters.
“There are NCAA opportunities, there are scholarship opportunities, there are Olympic opportunities, there are opportunities to travel the world,” she said.
Tucker hopes to inspire a new generation of shooters to make the U.S. team, and he plans to start his own coaching business in the near future.
“I’m big on developing the next generation,” Tucker said. “We need more juniors to help the sport grow.”
Prior to competing in Tokyo, Tucker trained at least six days a week, five to six hours a day, and at Paris 2024 he has ramped up his training to maximise a balanced life.
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Mary Tucker, from Florida, taught herself shooting skills by watching YouTube videos while in high school. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
In addition to shooting practice, Tucker also incorporates cardio, yoga and strength training into her training, and more importantly, she incorporates a mental workflow into the mix.
“It’s something you have to constantly work at,” she says. “It’s a lot of visualization — knowing the scope, what it feels like, how the pressure will affect you, and putting yourself in that situation in your head.”
Although Tucker was tucked away in Europe, far removed from the athletes’ 2024 Olympic festivities, he still had the opportunity to shoot last summer at the very range where he competed last week in Chateauroux, France.
“It didn’t feel like the Olympics,” she said. “It’s unfortunate because I would have liked to be in the athletes’ village and walk around the other sports, but there was a peaceful atmosphere.”
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Mary Tucker and Lukas Kozenieski will compete in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. (Ju Huanzong/Xinhua via Getty Images)
Tucker, a Sarasota native, humbly believes that shooting is a sport anyone can master if they have the desire to explore and succeed.
“I could barely hit the target in the lying position, which is supposed to be the easiest position,” she said.
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As a high school athlete, Tucker said he would watch YouTube videos and copy the techniques before competing in local tournaments.
“I always say this is one of, if not the only, sports that literally anyone can do,” Tucker said. “You just have to really want to do it and be motivated. I have terrible focus and I’m always on the go, but I can stay focused for the seven seconds it takes.”
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