Colorado Springs, Colo., February 8-9, 2020
USA Shooting will announce the Olympic Air Rifle team on Sunday after the final competition of Air Rifle Olympic Trials Part II. The top two men and women will represent Team USA in the Air Rifle competition in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games later this summer.
Over 55 athletes are competing for their chance at a spot on the Olympic Air Rifle Team. Going into the event, the top eight athletes for both men and women are a mix of experienced Olympians, College and High School competitors.
On the women's side, Ginny Thrasher (Springfield, Virginia) is looking to defend her Olympic Gold in this event. Thrasher was the first Gold Medal Winner of the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. Mary Tucker (Sarasota, Florida) is currently in first place going into the weekend with Alison Weisz (Belgrade, Montana) right behind her by .4 points.
In the men’s Air Rifle, Lucas Kozeniesky (Southern Pines, North Carolina) is looking to make his second Olympic appearance as well. Going into the competition he is ranked in first place with his score from Olympic Trials Part I. Currently in second place is Army Marksmanship Unit athlete Timothy Sherry (Highlands Ranch, Colorado). High School athletes Matthew Sanchez (Tampa, Florida) and Scott Rockett (Cary, North Carolina) are seated seventh and eighth respectively.
Part II of the Olympic Trials begins Saturday as athletes will face two straight days of competition. The competition is comprised of Saturday's qualifying score and Sundays qualifying score plus finals points awarded to the top eight qualifiers. This cumulative score will be combined with the participant's score from Trials Part I (Winter Airgun Championships) which took place back in December 2019. The combined score will determine the Olympic Team.
Two Olympic alternates per event will also be announced.
Team USA Paralympic team will also be competing at Air Rifle Trials Part II, but the team will not be announced until later this Summer. Air Rifle Trials Part II will count as one of the qualifying competitions athletes can earn scores. The top four scores from any of the qualifying events will count towards an overall score that will determine the Paralympic team.
Air Rifle, Olympic Trials Part II will take place at the US Olympic and Paralympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The complete shooting schedule can be found here: Air Rifle, Olympic Trials Part II Schedule
