USA wins first medal of the Olympics in shooting event
The United States won the first gold medal of the 2016 Rio Games.
Olympic competition has officially begun, and 19-year-old Virginia “Ginny” Thrasher took home the gold medal in the women’s 10m air rifle competition. The teenager won the NCAA championship for West Virginia University earlier this year.
Thrasher’s interest in the sport was sparked during a family hunting trip five years ago. A soon-to-be sophomore engineering major at West Virginia, Thrasher was competing in her first international shooting competition.
Thrasher finished sixth during the qualifying round before defeating Chinese shooters Li Du and Yi Siling. Du took silver and Siling, who earned took gold in the 2012 London Games, was awarded the bronze.
Thrasher will compete in the 50m three position event in a few days. Her gold is the third by the USA in women’s air rifle, its first since 2000.
