Ginny Thrasher’s Journey to Winning Olympic Gold

At just 19 years old, Ginny Thrasher made history at the 2016 Rio Olympics by winning the first gold medal awarded at the Games in the women’s 10m air rifle event. Her victory surprised many, as she had no major international experience before Rio and was ranked just 23rd in the world heading into the Olympics. Here, Ginny Thrasher shares her journey to Olympic Gold.

Getting Inspired

I started Olympic shooting after a hunting trip with my grandpa. He would always take my dad and older brothers deer hunting every year, and I wanted to go. I marched up to him at 13 and announced that I wanted to go hunting, too, and he was so happy! He immediately signed me up for a hunter safety course, and that year, we went hunting.

I very quickly realized that hunting was… boring! To get up at 4 a.m., wait in the cold for a deer to walk by, and only get one shot? That wasn’t for me. But pulling the trigger was. The adrenaline of that moment was something I will never forget. That made me want to try out for my high school’s varsity air rifle team the next year, and I quickly fell in love.

Intensive Training

We trained in a converted tractor shed with no AC or bathrooms, but that didn’t matter to me. Those humble beginnings were where I started just a few days a week, but eventually, as my training and skill increased, I set my sights on going to college on a shooting scholarship. This required more practice, travel, and commitment than I had ever given anything in my life. During my senior year, I signed up with West Virginia University, the best NCAA rifle team in history, and made my first international competition.

From there, life became a whirlwind. I went to college and found a place with what I didn’t have before – unlimited resources. I now had all the range time, high-level coaching, and teammates I could wish for, and each day, I was just focused on getting better. At this point, I didn’t care about the Olympics; I just wanted to see how good I could be.

A Crucial Win

We went to the NCAA Championships, the biggest match in a college shooter’s season, and I had the match of my life. I won the air rifle and the .22 caliber smallbore portions of the individual competition, and WVU won the team event. The fun wasn’t over there, though. Three weeks later, I had the Olympic Trials, where I won as a completely unexpected choice and became one of two women to make the Olympic Team that year.

The rest of the summer was spent in preparation, going to a new country every other week and honing my skills with the best coaches and athletes in the world. While the basics of shooting are the same at all levels and calibers (breath control, trigger control, mental control, etc.), the higher up we get in any competition, the smaller the margins become. At the Olympics, I would have to aim for a point the size of a period in Times New Roman size 12 font with my high-tech Feinwerkbau air rifle 40 times in a row. The 8 women who did this with the most accuracy would go into an elimination final. Scores start over at 0, and every few shots, whoever is in last place has to sit down – all while the crowd is screaming and the music is blaring. The last woman left standing would win the coveted Olympic gold.

Unexpected Victory

I was 19, days before starting my sophomore year of college, when I won Olympic Gold. It was unexpected, both for me and the rest of the world, but still something I knew I was capable of and had done all the work to be ready for. It was also a moment that changed my life in more ways than one. I went from being relatively unknown, in pure pursuit of my craft, to the face of the sport and an international celebrity. This created a tough adjustment, but it has given me the platform, such as on social media, to grow and represent the greatest sport in the entire world.

Since then, the journey of being a professional athlete has been just that, a journey. I have graduated college, competed during a global pandemic, flown to dozens of countries, experienced a career-threatening injury, and failed to make another Olympic Team. But I am forever grateful for all this sport has taught me and the community that has been a part of it.

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What an inspiring story! It exemplifies the power of hard work, dedication, and an unwavering belief in oneself to accomplish a dream. It is a testament to the opportunities that exist in shooting sports for those willing to dream big. See what the Olympic gold medalist is up to by following Ginny’s Instagram account. Be sure to tune into this year’s Summer Olympics and cheer on an underdog; you never know!