Olympic hotshots

By Shaun Inguanzo
A DOUBLE shot of Rahman, thanks barman.
That’s what the Australian Olympic gods ordered last week when Keysborough siblings Natalia and Paul Rahman qualified for the Beijing Olympics.
Paul, 23, and Natalia, 25, will now vie for Olympic gold in men’s and women’s skeet shooting events after outperforming their domestic competitors at Olympic trials in Sydney last week.
While it’s not the first time the Rahmans have competed at an elite level – Paul was selected for the Athens Olympics in 2004, and Natalia for the Melbourne Commonwealth Games in 2006 – it is the first time the brother and sister will represent their nation at the same event.
Natalia told Star that she won her selection on the final shot of the day last Friday at Cecil Park in Sydney.
“I knew when it came down to the last shot that I had to hit it to go (to the Olympics),” she said.
“But then a whole lot of people started watching.”
Natalia, who has in the past undergone sports psychology therapy to ensure her mind is as sharp as her shooting skill, said she slowly loaded her shotgun before having to shoot one of the hardest shots in the skeet routine.
“(The target) was coming from in front of me and travelling over my head,” she said.
“But it is one of the targets you have to hit before half way, otherwise it counts as zero.”
But for Natalia, the fact that she and brother Paul had made the Olympic team was more amazing than her high-pressure final shot.
“I was not doubting that he or I would go to Beijing, but the actual reality of it is hard to believe,” she said.
“It’s going to be unbelievable with the both of us going.”
Paul told star he was thrilled to be an Olympian alongside his sister, whose commitment to the sport had encouraged him to pursue it to an elite level.
Amazingly, the 23-year-old plumber has qualified after he gave up on the sport late last year.
“I gave up shooting at the end of last year and initially didn’t train for Olympic selections,” Paul said.
“But I ended up shooting in the first selection trial in January this year because I had already paid for it.
“So I was virtually going for a holiday, but ended up doing well.”
Like Natalia, Paul experienced a nail biting finale in Sydney on the weekend before securing his place in the Australian shooting team.
The Rahmans must now endure a rigorous training schedule that includes a rehearsal for the Olympic moment – a World Cup shooting event in Beijing – next month.