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| Human Interest | |
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Further Personal Information | |
| Residence | Melbourne, VIC, AUS |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Club / Team | Frankston Australian Clay Target Club: Melbourne, VIC, AUS |
Further Personal Information | |
| Higher education | Communications - Monash University: Melbourne, VIC, AUS |
General Interest | |
| Ambitions | To win a medal at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (Radio Carrum interview, 21 Sep 2020) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Name of coach | Russell Mark [personal]; Richard Sammon [national] |
General Interest | |
| Other information | RIO HEARTACHE FUELS TOKYO DREAM She finished fifth at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, where she said she simply didn't perform well enough to contend for a medal. She believes this experience will benefit her in Tokyo. "I still cannot to this day describe in words the feeling of heart wrenching disappointment that ran through my veins on the day of my competition [in Rio]. It had never felt so right and yet gone so wrong. Knowing I didn't achieve what I was expected was crushing. My feelings of unworthiness and disappointment were not just experienced by me but by many [other athletes in Rio]. What I learnt was that it is your response to winning or losing that makes you a winner or a loser, and while it is great to succeed in your sport it is even greater to excel in character. I was a baby [in Rio]. I was so fresh, and I went in there quite naive and it's taken me three to four years after Rio to realise that I have developed a lot as a shooter and I've grown up. That's why I'm looking forward to Tokyo so much now because I know what Rio was, I know how I performed, I know why I did this, and I know why I did that. Now coming into Tokyo, I have so much knowledge and so much experience and I think it can only benefit me positively." (shootingaustralia.org, 18 Jun 2020; girl.com.au, 01 Jan 2017) MIXED PAIRS She won gold in the mixed team trap event alongside James Willett at the 2019 World Championships in Lonato del Garda, Italy, and said she is motivated by the prospect of competing in more than one event at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. "I've always been jealous of the swimmers that have so many opportunities to compete at the Olympics. And it was so hard going into Rio knowing you had one opportunity and that was it for the next four years. It [mixed pairs] is such a great opportunity for us as Australians to win medals. I think we are going to go in quite favourable with the other teams. I think chemistry [in mixed pairs] is quite important. In an individual event I don't really care if anyone hits or misses a target next to me. I do care if James hits or misses a target. As we have shot more together internationally, we kind of know how each other rolls now. We're very ying and yang. James and I are very different shooters and different personalities but somehow, we gel perfectly together." (shootingaustralia.org, 18 Jun 2020; vis.org.au, 30 Apr 2020) BALANCE THROUGH WORK After finishing a degree in communications at Monash University in Melbourne, VIC, Australia, she began a course in early childhood education from the Selma Institute of Education, also in Melbourne. She has also worked part-time picking and packing apples, operated the front desk at a dry cleaning store, and assisted Russell Mark [her coach] and Lauryn Mark with their corporate shooting business. "I realised, at the start of last year [2019], that I needed more balance in my life so it wasn't so shooting orientated. And I think the perfect thing to do was to have a part-time job that has no relationship with the sport so you can switch off for a bit. I think it keeps you more mentally fresh rather than thinking about shooting 24/7. It's one of those sports where it gives you the most amazing opportunities to travel and see the world and compete at an elite level. But I think I realised after Rio [2016 Olympic Games], that I needed a little more balance.” (results.gc2018.com, 14 Apr 2018; Australian Women's Shooter, 01 Dec 2018; shootingaustralia.org, 18 Jun 2020) EARLY DAYS She says her experience from finishing last at her first international competition as a junior in 2007 played an important role in getting her to where she is today. "I came dead last. It was probably the best thing that could ever happened |
| Hobbies | Travelling, water sports. (Australian Women's Shooter, 01 Dec 2018; Instagram profile, 10 Jan 2021) |
| Famous relatives | Her father Bernie has coached her in the sport. (berwick.starcommunity.com.au, 13 Oct 2010) |
| Awards and honours | In 2018 and 2019 she was named the Senior Female High Performance Athlete of the Year by Shooting Australia. (shootingaustralia.org, 19 Nov 2020) In 2015 she received the Australian Female Shooter of the Year award. (shootingaustralia.org, 01 Jan 2019) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| When and where did you begin this sport? | She began the sport at age 15 at the Wonthaggi Gun Club in Victoria, Australia. She also did karate in her youth and attained a black belt in the sport. |
General Interest | |
| Nicknames | Teash, Teashy. (vis.org.au, 01 Feb 2020; Facebook profile, 23 Aug 2020) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Why this sport? | She became interested in the sport accompanying her father to their local shooting club on the weekends. "He never asked me if I would be interested. It was just one of those things where I got to the stage and thought, I'm here every single weekend, not doing anything, I may as well have a go. It was then, from just having a go, that it turned into a bit of bonding time with dad and our thing to do together on the weekends. From there I became quite good at it and I just progressed through the ranks. But it was really nice to have that time to connect with my dad on a different level.” |
General Interest | |
| Hero / Idol | Coach Russell Mark. (Radio Carrum interview, 21 Sep 2020) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Handedness | Right eye, right hand |
Further Personal Information | |
| Languages | English |
General Interest | |
| Sporting philosophy / motto | "[Shooting] is one of those sports where it's not physically demanding but mentally. You can go to the range and shoot as many targets as you want but you can't really replicate the pressure you get mentally in competition mode. I've seen a number of sports psychologists to help me deal with the mental side. They also help me with sticking to my routine as I find having a routine is really important. Because once you have a routine that you're comfortable with, it eases you into the whole process. But in saying that, it is one of those sports where you wake up and have no idea how you're going to perform because the day before or the competition before doesn't really matter." (gc2018.com, 13 Apr 2018) |
| Superstitions / Rituals / Beliefs | "When I get to a country I'm competing in, whatever I have for breakfast on the first day I arrive is what I will eat for breakfast for the rest of the week. It's something I've been doing for years, kind of like a superstition. Then, when I get to the range, I set up my little workstation, where I have my headphones to listen to music, and I take colouring books to distract me from the competition, to not think about the scores of who is doing well." (Radio Carrum interview, 21 Sep 2020) |
| Memorable sporting achievement | Winning gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, QLD, Australia. (Radio Carrum interview, 21 Sep 2020) |
| Most influential person in career | Her parents. (Radio Carrum interview, 21 Sep 2020; gc2018.com, 13 Apr 2018) |
| Milestones | At the 2013 World Cup event in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates, she and fellow Australian Catherine Skinner became the first female Australian shooters to win gold [Scanlan] and silver [Skinner] medals in the same World Cup event. The duo stood on the podium together again at the 2014 World Cup event in Tucson, AZ, United States of America, where Skinner won gold and Scanlan took bronze. (thechronicle.com.au, 19 Apr 2013; shootingaustralia.org, 03 Mar 2015) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Training Regime | She shoots up to 100 targets per training session. "I usually train three days at the range, and two days in the gym with my strength and conditioning coach. I feel the more fit I am, the more it improves my mental health which allows me to compete at the best I can be.” She also plays table tennis to maintain her hand-eye coordination. |
Further Personal Information | |
| Occupation | Athlete, Coach |
| Family | Partner Sam Waters |