Kovacevic: West Virginia's Thrasher finds bull's-eye for first American gold

Aug 6, 2016 • 9:45 pm

5.6K

RIO DE JANEIRO -- The ages of the eight women reaching the Olympic final in 10-meter air rifle Saturday were as follows: 34, 34, 34, 33, 27, 26, 25 ... and 19.

The experiences of those eight women included medals from across the globe, with those who would claim silver and bronze here both having won gold in previous Games ... and then there was the kid who'd never bested fourth in international competition.

The kid who'd never cradled a rifle until she was 14 and went deer hunting with her grandfather and, naturally, most naturally, bagged a deer.

The kid who learned to shoot not in some old-school club but in an older-school tractor shed.

The kid who took 45th a couple years ago in the Junior Olympics.

So when Ginny Thrasher, this diminutive West Virginia University freshman out of Springfield, Va., lowered her left eye into the scope of her black and silver Feinwerkbau 700 for the first shot of the Olympic final, calmly set herself, squared up and squeezed the trigger, she had every reason to expect to fail.

Or produce perfection, based on the more accurate scope of the situation.

First shot, bull's-eye.

And before long, the first gold of these Games for any nation.

The first to open a Games by anyone so young in any sport.

The first by any woman at West Virginia.

The first for USA Shooting since Nancy Napolski-Johnson at the Sydney 2000 Games, just the third ever for the organization in the Olympics.

All that history imbedded into one incredible instant.

I asked this extraordinary young lady, who could hardly contain her glee but at the same time diligently, dutifully ran through a list of family members, coaches and friends who'd helped her along, how she found a level composure in that instant that she'd never really needed previously:

"Ginny's here to win."

Oh, my, but that adolescent inflection!

To watch her and hear her, it's far easier to picture Thrasher hanging with her buds at the local coffeeshop sipping a mocha-choca latte and marveling at the latest 'Pretty Little Liars.' But to see the result, it's evident what West Virginia rifle coach Jon Hammond means when he says, "When it comes to anything that's a challenge — a test, a competition, training — it's very easy for her to dial in that concentration."

That's it. That's got to be it. It's no coincidence that among the first to draw praise from Thrasher afterward was Sean McCann, director of sports psychology for the entire U.S. Olympic team. The two developed a trust all through trials and the trip here.

"What's most attractive of rifle is the mental side of the sport," Thrasher said. "Anyone can go and hit a 10. It's not that hard. To go and shoot 10 after 10 after 10 in a big event is very hard. You have to have a mastery of the mental side, controlling your emotions, following your process and not thinking about the outcome."

OK, but not everyone can shoot a 10.9. That's how the first shot was scored, the highest possible in the sport, and it was one that neither she nor the rest of the field was likely to match. Only she didn't need to. Much like a gymnast or figure skater can apply pressure to the competition with early excellence, that shot was the early kill.

Thrasher seemed to realize it, too.

As she put it, "It's very hard to come back from a 10.9."

West Virginia's Ginny Thrasher wins gold. - GETTY

Neither the Associated Press nor Sports Illustrated nor any shooting publication had picked Thrasher to medal, but there she was, getting the gold draped around her neck directly from IOC president Thomas Bach, who always handles the first presentation himself.

“This is very special for me," Thrasher said. "For me to start out Rio 2016 with a gold medal for the USA makes me incredibly proud. I’m happy to positively represent my country.”

Word quickly whizzed through Morgantown, including at the Mountaineers' afternoon football practice. The powerhouse rifle team is primarily known for its NCAA-record 18 championships that include the past four, but it also has a high visibility as part of the football festivities.

"It's awesome, for Ginny and for all of us," West Virginia guard Tony Matteo said. "To get a gold medal, that's amazing."

Thrasher is accompanied here by parents Roger and Valerie, brothers Rory and Carl. Part of a military family, including her father serving in the Air Force, there were several moves, to the point Thrasher now jokingly refers to herself as "having a lot of hometowns." But it was evident Saturday that she's found at least one firm home for the foreseeable future.

"I can't say enough about how fortunate I've been within the community at West Virginia," Thrasher said. "I'm actually very excited for school to start and get back to a normal routine. One of my favorite things about Morgantown has been how they've always supported the rifle program. And I think, for me, winning the NCAAs to making the Olympics to this ... I can't imagine they could be any more supporting, but I think they will be."

Next, Thrasher will compete again in the three-position event Aug. 11. After that, then the flight back to Washington's Dulles Airport, she'll have, oh, 20 hours to prepare for classes back in Morgantown toward her biomedical engineering major.

"If I'm being honest, I'm really looking forward to it. It'll be good to have things back to normal."

For a while, anyway. At least the flight to Tokyo in 2020 won't interrupt classes.

MORE OLYMPICS