PARIS 2024: Fort Moore soldier returns to Olympic shooting in two events

FORT MOORE, Ga. (WRBL) — Last month, multiple members of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU) based at Fort Moore qualified for the Paris 2024 Olympics in not one, but two, events. For Sgt. Sagen Maddalena, the air rifle and three-position rifle qualifications mean a second chance at Olympic gold.

The shooter made her first Olympics slot for the Tokyo Games, placing fifth in three-position rifle in 2021. She remembers sitting in her hotel room three years ago, setting her goal for this Olympic quad.

“I’m like, ‘2024, I’m going for both guns.’ – you know – ‘I’m going to make this happen,” Maddalena said. “And so I made it happen.”

Maddalena earned her slot in three-position rifle following the final round of qualifiers held at Fort Moore in March. She had already qualified to represent the United States in air rifle at the final round of Olympic Trials for that event held in Anniston, Ala., in January.

Gold star families, veterans, others gather for Vietnam Wall dedication ceremony

The athlete shot with near-perfect precision and accuracy to earn her second Olympic slot, but she wasn’t completely happy with the performance. Maddalena said she struggled in the standing portion of competition after tweaking her wrist. Three-position rifle is done in kneeling, standing and prone positions.

Reflecting on her results following the competition, Maddalena explained there is a fine line between being constructive and overly critical in a sport with such little room for error.

She said, “We try and be the very best in a perfectionist-like sport and the smallest mistakes can look drastic on the score and so I can’t get too hard on myself.”

The athlete feels like a better standing performance is within reach.

“I’ve been training the standing position for a long time and I’m waiting to get it like it’s there. It’s right there,” Maddalena said. “You know, when it comes around, I’m going to have the experience and know I’ve failed enough times that I can succeed.”

Phenix City Police focusing on juvenile crimes believed to be committed by gang members

As a member of the USAMU, Maddalena has the opportunity to shoot nearly everyday as part of her job. However, Olympic dreams were never on her radar until a few years ago.

“I was dreaming more of I’m going to be a soldier and, and I’m going to serve my country,” Maddalena said.

Many of her friends had joined the Army and she felt called to serve. Her interest in high-level competitive shooting began as she started considering college.

“I was competing in another rifle event – not this one [three-position rifle] specifically at the time – and I thought I would stick with that,” Maddalena said. “But one day I had a conversation with someone and started thinking about college and just things started turning after that.”

The athlete earned her B.S. in natural resource management at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) where she also competed for the school’s marksmanship team. During her time at UAF, Maddalena became an eight-time All-American and two-time World Champion between 2014 and 2018.

She said she was proud to be representing her country, the USAMU, and her family back home in Groveland, Calif., at the Paris Games. When she returned from the Tokyo Olympics, the town of less than 1,000 threw a parade in her honor.

When she competed in Tokyo in 2021, Maddalena had the support of family and friends behind her. Since then, she said her community has grown exponentially. The Olympian added it is her community which gives her purpose.

“I’m going not just for myself but for all these people in my community,” Maddalena said.

Looking toward the Paris Games, Maddalena hopes to channel her nerves into a winning performance. She admitted even top-level athletes get nervous.

“Our heart starts pounding and no one sees that, but we feel it,” Maddalena said, patting her chest to mimic a heartbeat.

She continued, “We feel it and it’s like, ‘Okay use this energy for focus.’ I can’t make my heart stop beating. I can use it to help me focus on that target just a little better.”

Last Olympics, Maddalena missed the podium. This year, she has her sights trained on gold.

For more coverage about Fort Moore’s 2024 Olympic qualified soldiers, stay with WRBL.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WRBL.