My Olympic Sport

I began rifle shooting at the age of 9 in Woburn, Massachusetts at the Mass. Rifle Association gun club. I remember taking my first shot in prone with the club’s .22 Anschutz rifle and thinking to myself, “this is so cool!” From that point on I was hooked. During my teenage years, I tried other sports, soccer was a favorite, but shooting kept on calling my name. The shooting sports has provided me a unique challenge in athletics. The rifle shooting is a special combination of athleticism and mental skill that I hadn’t found in any other sports. It provided me a challenge and over the years has taught me life skills that have so much application – discipline, focus and drive just to name a few. This challenge is what makes shooting such a special sport, unlike any other. I attended Texas Christian University where competed for the T.C.U. NCAA Division I Rifle team and gained my B.S. of Nutritional Sciences degree and completed the C.P. in Dietetics allowing me to become a Registered Dietitian after I passed my certification exam. After graduation, I continued to pursue my athletic career by choosing to train at the Olympic Training Center and also pursue my professional career as an R.D. in wellness. My passion for nutrition and the shooting sports combined with the skills rifle shooting has taught me brings me to the point where I am at today. For the past year I have been injured and undergone two back surgeries due to my numerous back issues. I plan to train through this next year with the hope of making my second Olympic team for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Though this year has been trying and this next one wont be easy, the challenges have supported my belief that life is bigger than just us and what we want to accomplish for our own benefit. I truly believe that life itself is a gift and anything else is a blessing that’s been given to us so we can bless others. With this attitude, I know I have blessed a lot and I want to be able to bless others in the ways I have been blessed. This is why I have started Elijah Wellness. I have big plans for the blessings I want to bring to others but for now this is where I will begin. Please follow me in my journey as I pursue my passion for rifle shooting and my passion for blessing others with wellness in the many years to come.

Shooting Accomplishments

  • T.C.U. Pope Boone Athlete of the Year recipient, 2012 & 2013
  • NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Committee award, National Collegiate Athletic Assoc., 2013
  • Mountain West Conference Scholar Athlete Award, 2009-2011
  • Earned 2009-2013 NCAA All-American: First Team Smallbore and First Team Air Rifle, 8 total All-American Awards
  • 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 T.C.U. Women’s Rifle Team MVP

International Results

  • 2010 World Championships in Munich, Germany: Junior World Champions and World Record Team in Smallbore; Junior Individual Silver Medalist in Smallbore
  • 2011 World Cup Changwon, Gold Medalist (Air)
  • 2012 Olympic Games, 7th Place (Air)
  • 2013 USA Shooting National Champion, Women’s Air Rifle
  • 2013 USA National Championship, Bronze Medalist (3 Position)
  • 2014 World Cup USA, Bronze Medalist (3 Position)
  • 2014 Munich World Cup, 7th Place (Air)

National Results

  • Qualified for National Team by taking 2nd at the Beijing Olympic Trials in 2008
  • 2008 National Junior Olympic Championships, Gold Medalist (Air)
  • 2009 National Junior Olympic Championships, Bronze (3 Position), Silver Medalist (Air)
  • 2010 NCAA TCU Rifle Championship Team; 2010 NCAA Individual Smallbore Rifle Champion
  • 2010 National Champion (Air Rifle); Silver Medalist (3 Position)
  • 2012 NCAA TCU Rifle Championship Team; 2012 NCAA Individual Smallbore Rifle Champion
  • 2012 National Champion (Air Rifle); Bronze Medalist (3 Position)
  • 2013 National Champion (Air Rifle); Bronze Medalist (3 Position)

Junior Results

  • 2008 National Junior Olympic Championships, Gold Medalist (Air)
  • 2009 National Junior Olympic Championships, Silver Medalist (Air), Bronze (3 Position)
  • 2010 National Junior Olympic Championships, Gold Medalist (Air), Silver (3 Position)
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