http://memphismirror.com/memphis-rifle-coach-earns-a-spot-at-the-2020-tokyo-olympics/
An assistant coach for the Memphis rifle team will be competing at the Olympics this year in Tokyo, Japan.
Alison Weisz, a graduate student and assistant coach of the University of Memphisrifle team, has qualified to represent the U.S. She will be just one of four people on the U.S. rifle team.
Weisz has always been very successful in her sport. Weisz started off shooting a BB gun at age nine and then moved up to using air rifles as she got older.
“There was a flyer at my elementary school for a firearm education program, so I brought it home for my parents and they thought it was a good idea for me since we lived in Montana. We didn’t own any guns, but likelihood of me using one at a friend’s house was good. The course turned out to be competitive BB gun shooting as well” said Weisz. “I started with that and I fell in love with it.
She said one of her first mentors called her “Annie Oakley” and she was told she had a lot of natural talent for shooting.
As a high school student, she won multiple rifle competitions in her home state of Montana. After she graduated she was recruited by Ole Miss, where she attended college and joined their rifle team, making an immediate impact and name for herself.
Weisz became the first freshman in Ole Miss rifle history to qualify for the NCAA championship. She had the highest air rifle average in the team, set her career high in air rifle, and was also the first freshman to earn All-GARC, Great American Rifle Conference, honors.
Her success continued into her other college years. Weisz qualified for the NCAA championships, had the best season average on the team, and received most valuable player and scholar athlete awards as a sophomore.
As a junior Weisz was given second team All American honors, becoming only the fifth All-American in Ole Miss rifle history. She qualified for the NCAA championships for the third year in a row and led the team in air rifle and small bore again.
In her senior year Weisz finished in first place at the USAS National Championship and became a member of the National Team. She received second team All-American honors again and qualified for the NCAA Championship for the fourth time. Weisz also set the school record in air rifle and led the team in air rife average for the fourth consecutive year.
After graduation Weisz continued to hone her skills in rifling. She moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado. Home of the Olympic training center where she lived and trained. While in Colorado Weisz met Memphis’ head rifle coach, Dan Hermsmeier.
Hermsmeier offered Weisz the assistant coaching job at Memphis.
“I originally said absolutely not” said Weisz. “I was still training and I had a lot of dilemmas with the thought of coaching a team and trying to give 100 percent of myself to them, but also trying to give 100 percent of myself to my training. Eventually I realized what I could provide to them and that they were super supportive.”
Levi Clark, senior and captain of the rifle team, says they are excited to have Weisz coaching for their team.
“We knew how good she was and it was really exciting to know that we had this huge wealth of knowledge at our disposal.”
Rifle events in the Olympics require that each country must earn a quota in order to send an athlete, but each country can only get two quotas. The quotas are earned by placing high in a World Cup or Pan American game
In August of 2019 Weisz participated in the Pan American Games in Lima, Peru. Here she won a gold medaland earned a second quota for the Olympics, which meant she won her spot.
Then in December she went to the first round of Olympic trials in Colorado and finished in second there, so she was officially on the Olympic team.
First weekend in February Weisz had two more qualifying matches and two finals. The top two scorers through those competitions, which included Weisz, went to the Olympics.
Weisz is excited to be in this position. “I am super honored, super blessed, and super lucky. I am excited to represent our country, Memphis, and Ole Miss.
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