ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, July 24, 1996 TAG: 9607240027
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B3 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: COLLEGE PARK, GA.
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK STAFF WRITER
Ben Amonette's second Olympic experience ended Tuesday with improvement at the Atlanta Games.
Amonette, a disappointing 44th in Saturday's 10-meter air pistol competition, finished tied for 25th among 45 competitors in the men's 50-meter free pistol qualifying.
The Radford resident compiled a score of 555 points at the Wolf Creek Shooting Complex range, the same number he posted four years ago at the Barcelona Games, where he placed 19th.
``My goal was 560,'' said Amonette, the lone Southwest Virginian among the 10,750 athletes in the XXVIth Olympiad. ``I thought that might put me in the top 10, but this is an unforgiving crowd. You have to shoot high in this group or you're not going to do much.''
A 560 would have put Amonette in a tie for 11th. A 563 was the cutoff for the eight-man medal round. Each competitor shot six rounds of 10 shots in a two-hour time limit with a .22-caliber pistol with sights. Ten is a perfect score on a shot.
``I was so much more prepared today than I was Saturday,'' Amonette said of the jitters that accompanied his air pistol performance at the Games in his own nation. ``I worked harder, and I was holding it well.
``I did a lot right, but in this group, you really have to be honed to a fine edge. I just had a few too many 8s. That's not bad. In air gun, like I had the other day, it's almost unforgivable. An 8 is more OK in free pistol.''
Amonette said the world-class competition has improved since the Barcelona Games, as evidenced by the higher scores for these Games.
``I was watching the Games on TV in the Olympic Village and I saw gymnastics,'' he said. ``I equate what happened to me to one of them falling off the balance beam. There's a fine line you walk, and there are days you fall. It doesn't mean you can't do it, though.''
Asked whether he would continue shooting on an international level and try for a U.S. spot in the Sydney Games in 2000, the 41-year-old technical service representative said it's too early to say.
Amonette said that although he might have posted better numbers, shooting in the Olympics in his backyard is the highlight of his 16 years in the sport.
``I'll never forget this, although the air gun [Saturday], I'd just as soon forget what happened there,'' he said. ``After what happened today, I don't see any reason to kick myself around.
``What I wanted to prove when I came here is that I'm a world-class shooter. I think I am, but I wanted to prove it to other people, the ones who support me, my coaches. That's important to me.
``Every time you're in a shooting match, you should learn something. What I learned here is that I need to be subjected to world-class competition more often than I have been. It's a lot different than practicing by yourself.''
LENGTH: Medium: 59 linesby CNB