Jamie Beyerle, Sandra Fong Named to 2008 U.S. Olympic Team

[USA Shooting]

in Women’s 3-Position Rifle



FT. BENNING, Ga. (May 22, 2008) – Jamie Beyerle (Lebanon, Pa.) and Sandra Fong (New York, N.Y.) finished in first and second places respectively in the Women’s 3-Position Rifle event at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Shooting (Smallbore) today, each earning berths to the 2008 U.S. Olympic team.



Beyerle, the 2007 Pan American Games gold medalist, won the match by a substantial margin, finishing with a total score of 1959.0 and securing a spot on her first U.S. Olympic team.



“I have been waiting a long time for this,” said Beyerle. “This is what I have been training for the past six years and it feels great. My goal was to come in and shoot world-class scores and I think I accomplished that.”



Eighteen-year-old Fong finished in second place with 1937.6 to earn a spot on her first U.S. Olympic team. Amanda Furrer (Spokane, Wash.), the 2007 Pan American Games bronze medalist, finished in third place with 1926.9. Fong’s older sister Abigail Fong (New York, N.Y.) ended the competition in fourth place with 1924.3 points.



Amy Sowash (Richmond, Ky.) finished in the fifth spot with 1918.9, while 2004 Olympian Morgan Hicks (Roy, Wash.) took sixth place with 1905.4. U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU) member Nicole Cooper (Kearny, N.J.) and Taylor Beard (Parker, Colo.) finished in seventh and eighth places with scores of 1904.1 and 1895.5 respectively.



Over 170 top rifle and pistol shooters from around the United States competed for spots on the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Shooting (Smallbore) May 12-22 at Ft. Benning's International Shooting Complex in Columbus, Ga., home of the USAMU. The U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Shooting is a collaborative partnership between the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) and USA Shooting.



The rifle/pistol athletes were selected to the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team based on a combination of the three days of match scores, plus each athlete’s top two finals scores. The USOC has final approval of all U.S. Olympic Team members.



The 2008 U.S. Olympic Team members in Men’s 3-Position Rifle and Men’s Rapid Fire Pistol were named on May 19. Two-time Olympian and USAMU member Jason Parker (Omaha, Neb.) earned his second spot on the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team. Parker will represent the U.S. in both Men’s 3-Position Rifle and Men’s Air Rifle at the Olympic Games in Beijing this August. Parker will join 2004 Olympian Matt Emmons (Browns Mills, N.J.) on the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team in Men’s 3-Position. Emmons has already secured two Olympic team spots, both in 3-Position Rifle and Prone Rifle. Emmons was the 2004 Olympic gold medalist in Men’s Prone. Keith Sanderson (San Antonio, Texas), the 2007 World Cup Munich bronze medalist and Olympic quota slot winner in Men’s Rapid Fire Pistol, earned his first berth to the U.S. Olympic Team in the Rapid Fire event.



Men’s Prone Rifle, Women’s Sport Pistol and Men’s Free Pistol U.S. Olympic team members were selected on May 15 with two-time Olympian and 2004 silver medalist Mike Anti securing a spot on his fourth consecutive U.S. Olympic Team in Men’s Prone. In Women’s Sport Pistol, three-time Olympian Beki Snyder (Colorado Springs, Colo.) earned her second spot on the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team. Snyder will represent the U.S. in both Women’s Sport Pistol and Women’s Air Pistol at the Beijing Olympic Games. Fifty-six year old three-time Olympian Libby Callahan (Columbia, S.C.) landed a spot on her fourth U.S. Olympic Team in Women’s Sport Pistol. In Men’s Free Pistol, 2004 Olympian Jason Turner (Rochester, N.Y.) qualified for his second consecutive U.S. Olympic Team, along with two-time Olympian Daryl Szarenski (Saginaw, Mich.), who will represent the U.S. on his third Olympic team. Turner will compete in both Free Pistol and Air Pistol at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, having previously qualified for a Spot in Men’s Air Pistol.



The U.S. earned a total of seven 2008 Olympic quota slots for pistol (women’s air – 1, men’s air – 1, men’s free – 2, women’s sport – 2 and men’s rapid fire – 1). A slot equals a person, so because Beki Snyder and Jason Turner already qualified in Air Pistol, and are now doubling in Sport Pistol and Free Pistol respectively, Brenda Shinn and Brian Beaman, who were the second place finishers at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Airgun, have now qualified for spots on the U.S. Olympic Team in Air Pistol. There will be seven total people competing in pistol at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.



For complete U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Shooting (Smallbore) results, please visit www.usashooting.org.

[Hip's Ax]

Hoo Ray for Jamie and Sandy!! I smell Gold!!

[WarWagon]

I'm glad to hear Jamie made it. She and I used to shoot a lot of the same matches as Juniors, and our Junior club always hung out with the Palmyra gang out at Camp Perry and at Erin Gestyl's matches in PA.

But one thing a lot of you don't know about Jamie: she is perhaps the greatest wiffle ball player to have ever lived. I kid you not. Her shooting abilities are undoubtedly related to a sort of superhuman hand-eye coordination, because in a pick up game outside the huts at Camp Perry, I don't think she missed a single ball that was thrown her way (must have been back in 2001 or 2002).

[Guest101]

Congratulations to our two latest Olympians!

It seems as though the number of women who tried out in 3-P was low, especially given the number of women in the USA. Is this because only those who are pre-qualified could really make the team?

Also...
Does anyone know what kind of scores for women's 3P are considered world class (enough to medal in Olympic competition) ?