Georgina (Gorgs) Geikie, British number one ladies pistol shooter, has fulfilled her dream of representing Team GB at the Olympics – and we, along with her vast network of supporters, are so very proud of her.
After taking part in the opening ceremony, Gorgs competed in
two events: the 10m Pistol on 29th July and the 25m
Sport Pistol on 1st August.
A crowd of us from Helpful Holidays went to
watch Gorgs compete in her second event at the Royal Artillery Barracks in
Woolwich. The atmosphere was amazing – quite emotional to see someone you know
competing.Competition was incredibly tough on the day with very little separating individual scores. Gorgs didn’t manage to qualify for the finals sadly. Her performance, by her own admission, didn’t match her ability and she found the whole spectacle of competing at the Olympics in front of a home crowd quite overwhelming.
But simply being selected to compete at the
Olympics is a massive achievement in itself – Great Britain hasn’t had a pistol
shooter at the Olympics in 80 years. You can begin to appreciate the hard work and dedication required once you take on board that pistol shooters were banned from training in the UK from 1997 and Gorgs had to travel to Switzerland, up until a special Olympic dispensation two years ago when pistol shooting was allowed at a handful of UK ranges. This still meant that Gorgs had to travel from Devon to Dorset or Surrey to train. A definite disadvantage compared to her international competitors who can not only start at a younger age but also train at their local club range.
Well done, Gorgs!
You can read personal updates from Gorgs on her blog and follow her on Twitter.