our sport not only because of her success, but if you ever hear her speak, she talks a lot about the jour- ney of the Olympics - it’s not all about the winning, even though that adds to the journey. She has ac- complished things in sport that no one will ever come close to, she is just a fi erce competitor and you can see this in her from afar. For me, just being around Kim makes you want to win because you know she is going to. Her relaxed at- titude about competing is just fun to watch and be a part of.”
Strange thing is, you
those obstacles. Winning is what makes it that much sweeter. The harder
the
obstacle to overcome - the sweeter the victory. It’s what makes each Olympian come back again and again.” How much does winning
a sixth medal motivate her? “It would be huge,” she ad- mits. “But it’s not about just me. It’s what it means to the sport, to the shooting indus- try. It’s a huge driving force in that aspect. Personally, I think it would be big, but it’s more about all the other fac- tors. It’s never about that for me. It’s always been about what I can do to give back, move forward and hopefully inspire kids and the next generation.” Just how good has Kim Rhode’s Olympic success been? Her resume also in- cludes three other top-10 fi nishes in Skeet and Trap; disciplines she rarely trained or competed in at the time. In eight Olympic events, her lowest fi nish is ninth. Her
accolades don’t just stop at Olympic medals. Add three World Championship med- als - one of each color - three Pan American and 27 World Cup medals. Simply put, domination and the pursuit of perfection hasn’t become a once-in-a-while thing but rather a full-time occupation for Rhode. Her opponents have the greatest respect for her. “Kim raises the level of
competition because you know there’s no room for mistakes,” said Slovakia’s two-time Olympian and 2012 Olympic bronze med- alist
Danka Bartekova. “
You know when she com- petes she’s going to show up and shoot well and is al- ways ready to perform. Every sport needs heroes and Kim is one of them in shooting. I can imagine there are a lot of people who watch her shoot and want to be like her. I respect her as a true role model and an inspira- tion for many, including me.
44 USA Shooting News | July 2015
She keeps me alert, focused and working really hard ev- ery time I see her at the shooting range.” Being her Olympic room-
mate in 2012 helped bolster a recipe for success for rifl e shooter and Olympic gold medalist Jamie Corkish. “Kim is an amazing com-
petitor and proves that every time she steps on the line,” Corkish states. “I had the op- portunity to room with Kim at the 2012 Olympics where I could sense her focus and competitiveness. She fol- lowed her routine prior to her match and nothing was go- ing to distract her. It’s amaz- ing watching Kim compete because everything seems so easy and nothing seems to rattle her. I remember in London she was doing inter- views between each stage of shooting, which for many shooting athletes that would go to their heads or distract them, but not Kim, nothing seems to distract her. Kim is a great ambassador for
won’t get Rhode to dwell on her success much. In
fact, there’s little trace of her accomplishments inside her own home. No medals or trophies displayed and does not take the time to read her own press. “It’s never really been about the winning and the medals and success.” she admits. “It’s been more about the people, the places and the fun. It has always been there. My family and I have always downplayed all the big matches. There’s a lot of amazing people out there and you never really think of yourself as being the best. You’re just like ev- erybody else in the world. You don’t think of yourself as any different.” She’s readily aware that one doesn’t build a legacy on medals alone. The face of USA Shooting, she’s as giving of her time as her training, competition and family schedule permits these days participating in industry shows, sponsor events and any opportunity she can fi nd to get in front
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