For New York native Thrasher this was a dream Olympic debut after only taking up the sport four years ago.
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She wasn’t merely “here” in Rio, where the best athletes on the planet have converged in this embattled corner of paradise.
In the final round, she opened with a slight lead before shooting a 10.5 out of 10.9, which Li Du matched.
Thrasher will next compete on August 11 in the three-position event.
“I think when I took the lead in the final I kind of realised that this is a possibility”.
“This is very special for me”.
Thrasher grew up as a figure skater but switched to competitive shooting five years ago after a family hunting trip.
Thrasher, a sophomore at West Virginia, was a dark horse competing against an experienced and talented field of shooters, and was thought to be out of medal contention, even though she is an NCAA champion.
When she returns, she will return as an Olympic gold medalist. And Thrasher’s not the only rifle Olympian speaking out.
Rugby: France won the first game of rugby at the Olympics in 92 years – and the first ever for women – beating Spain 24-7 to begin the six-day sevens tournament.
Despite her lack of experience, Thrasher woke up with confidence Saturday morning and was eager to take her black Feinwerkbau 700 air rifle to the range. While the major events were just getting underway, Ginny Thrasher won the first gold medal for US at the Olympics and made her country proud.
The pressure was heavy, and the stakes high.
“I just had a plan today to do the best I could and I’m happy with my result”. Shortly thereafter, her score of 10.4 was enough to surpass Li’s final shot of 10.1. “It says a statement: ‘Ginny’s here to win'”.
The Chinese, in her third Olympics with golds from 2004 and 2008 (50m rifle three-positions), had come back from the brink of elimination several times in the final, with a solid 10.8 three times. No one was injured, and the event went on unaffected.
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“I get home 20 hours before the first class”, Thrasher said.
