USA Shooting Team Shares Their Holiday Memories and 2013 Resolutions COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (December 21, 2012)
Matt Emmons, Three-Time Olympic Medalist, Rifle 
When thinking about special Christmas presents, the first one that pops in my head is when I got my first competition airgun. It must have been Christmas 1996. I’d been shooting an old borrowed Diana air rifle with target sights, but the gun was terribly inaccurate. I really wanted a decent airgun in a bad way. Mom and dad kept telling me it was too expensive and I’d have to wait. Well, Christmas morning came and I was opening presents. My parents did a heck of a job burying this airgun underneath all the other presents, so I got to it last. I was clueless as to what this big box was. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw it was a new Feinwerkbau C62. Dad had also been sneaky to hide a CO2 tank in the garage, so I filled the cylinder and shot in the basement practically all day. It wasn’t about receiving a big gift, though. It was something I wanted so much and the way my parents did it was awesome. I had absolutely no idea and was convinced I’d have to wait until I saved up the money for one myself. Thanks mom and dad! My 2013 shooting resolution is listen more to my body and do exactly what my PT’s tell me to do to get physically healthy again.

Jamie Gray, 2012 Olympic Gold Medalist,
Rifle
I honestly could not think of a "special" gift I received as a youngster so I had to inquire with my mother. The first thing that popped in her head was Quindy, a black Cabbage Patch Kid that I asked for constantly. My babysitter actually got the gift for me when I was 3 or 4. My mom says I took Quindy everywhere. I loved Cabbage Patch Kids when I was younger; I had at least 8 of them. I used to get one for Christmas or my birthday almost every year when I was young. Even still today my mom is trying to send my Cabbage Patch Kids back home with me. As for now they still reside in Lebanon, PA. As far as my shooting resolution I am focused on recovering my back from an injury I have been fighting since the end of 2010. Now that we know what could be the cause of the problem I am motivated to rehab as much as needed and be at 100% come 2014.