Rhode puts skeet shooting on the map

WHITTIER - When one thinks of the Olympic games, we tend to think of track and field, swimming and gymnastics, amongst other mainstays of the once-in-every-four-year-competitions.Rarely, if at all, do we think of skeet or double trap shooting. Kimberly Rhode, a U.S. Olympian in skeet and double trap shooting, has effectively and convincingly changed this perception with her past and present performance(s) at these 2012 London Olympic Games. Rhode, a former Cal Poly Pomona student, has been front and center with her near perfect performance. Kimberly Rhode, born in Whittier and now residing in South El Monte, is a gold medal winning 2012 Olympian in women's skeet shooting. Rhode is the first American to earn individual medals in five straight Olympiads. Rhode won her gold medal on Sunday, July 29th, with a record tying score of 99/100 orange clay targets hit. Wei Ning of China won the silver medal with 91 hits and Danka Bartekova of Slovakia took the bronze medal with a score of 90. Rhode won a gold medal in the double trap competition at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996, followed by a bronze medal in the same double trap competition at the Sydney Olympics in 2000. Rhode then won the gold medal in the double trap competition at the Athens Olympics in 2004, earned a silver medal for her efforts in skeet shooting at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and won the same skeet shooting competition in London at the Royal Artillery Barracks on July 29th. What makes Rhode's story even more intriguing is that she plans to compete at the Rio de Janeiro games in 2016 and doesn't see her Olympic run coming to an end any time soon. Rhode loves the competition and at 33 years of age, can continue to compete on a high level for many years to come. Remember the name Rhode in 2016.

********** Published: August 09, 2012 - Volume 11 - Issue 17