Athlete Feature: Sydney Carson Syd Vicious On The Skeet Field Sydney Carson couldn’t
have asked for a better fi rst trip overseas. As a member of the USA
Shooting Team that com- peted in the International Shooting Sports Federation (ISSF) Junior World Cup in Suhl, Germany earlier this summer, Carson (North Lib- erty, Indiana) not only left the match with a gold medal in Skeet, but the confi dence required for her next major competition - the ISSF World Championship in Granada, Spain. “In the Final, I shot and I
didn’t think about it or what anyone else was shooting, and when it was done, I looked over and saw I had the second-highest score and I was like ‘Oh my gosh, I’m in the gold medal round!’ It was crazy to me! At that point it was like I had come this far, I can do this and that’s what I told myself. People were telling me I’d come home with a medal so just shoot my best, but I was like ‘No, I’m going to come home with gold.’ When we got into the gold medal round, we were tied
going back to the last sta- tion. The girl I was shooting against was from Russia and she dropped the last bird of her pair and I knew I had to shoot both of the pairs to win and I did. When I shot my last pair, the crowd that was watching behind me erupted in applause and was cheering. My team and others were so supportive. It was a great experience.” Carson, 17, has contin-
ued to work on the mental aspects of her game leading up to Granada. “Going overseas a sec-
ond time isn’t as scary,” she said. “I’m defi nitely trying to work on the little things so when I get in a certain situa- tion I can still shoot my best. Knowing there will be so many more countries, that it’s an even bigger shoot – but even things like knowing how to deal with the lan- guage barrier and what to do when I get there – I’m just much more prepared now.” Known as “Syd Vicious”
(not for an affi nity of the band the Sex Pistols, but rather a moniker she earned after shooting her fi rst tur- key) to friends, family and teammates, the bubbly Carson fi nds shooting to be relaxing. Not only is she travelling overseas as a member of the Junior Na- tional Team, the high school senior is looking at colleges, performs in an all-girl chorus and regularly performs in her school’s annual play and
musical…all on top of train- ing three hours a day. “For me, it’s a huge stress
reliever to be behind the gun doing something I love. I get a lot of enjoyment out of that and I like that you meet so many wonderful people from around the country. I like that it’s a unique sport. When someone asks what I do and I say ‘skeet shoot,’ they always say that’s really neat!” Carson, who has been
shooting since she was 12 years old, is looking at poten- tially attending Lindenwood University to study forensics and shoot in their collegiate program and hopefully fur- ther her Olympic dream. “I know 2016 is out for
me. I still have so much more to learn and so much more to do and Kim (Rhode) kind of has that wrapped up,” Carson giggled. “But I think 2020 or 2024 there is defi nitely a chance I can get there if I work hard enough. I need more time behind the gun, practice, and any situa- tion or shoot that makes me a better shooter and gives me more experience will def- initely help.”
September 2014 | USA Shooting News
35
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68