As part of the lead-up to the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, we caught up with Scottish Target Shooter Lesley Stewart to talk about her career ahead of being selected to represent ParalympicsGB in the games. Lesley has had a remarkable journey which has seen her come through periods of adversity where she believed her chance to compete at a Paralympic Games had vanished. This is her story of how she got herself on the plane to Tokyo.
Background
Lesley is an above knee amputee Target Shooter with an incredible story to tell. Way back in 2004 she was a serving Military Police Officer but an injury sustained during a fitness exercise – a pulled muscle in her back – led to complications with her ankle which led to a below knee amputation. The issue however subsequently began to affect her knee and eventually she was diagnosed with a condition called Dystonia. This led to her having life or death deep brain stimulation, where electrical currents acted as a blocker to her condition spreading further.
This was naturally a life-changing and adverse period of Lesley’s life, however whilst undergoing rehabilitation at Headley Court, the Shooting Association put on a ‘Have a go’ day with the intention of getting injured military personnel into sport. Lesley soon showed an aptitude and passion for the sport and was invited to join the association, where she was fortunate enough to be participating during a ParalympicsGB team training camp.
Unbeknownst to Lesley, the coach of the team was watching her shoot and was impressed and invited her along to the next training camp – a life-changing coincidence that changed the course of her career.
Progressing and performing
Lesley attended camps throughout 2011 and her developing talent was rewarded with a place on the Paralympic Pathway Programme and within a year began competing in tournaments across the globe.
During this time her performances led to various medals, most notably winning silver at the 2013 European Championships held in Alicante, Spain in what she describes as her biggest achievement to date. With this Lesley went on to compete in many tournaments around the globe picking up medals along the way where she looked all set to aim for the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Unfortunately however an infection picked up in early 2016 proved a major setback in her career development.
Dealing with adversity
It was in Germany in 2016 when Lesley picked up an infection that was to prevent her from shooting for 3 long years. In this time she was hospitalised for a year where she had multiple infections that no cocktail of antibiotics could stop. It was because of this that Lesley had to undergo a second amputation, this time above the knee to which was then followed by an extensive recovery and rehabilitation period.
With 3 years out of the sport, Lesley decided to give shooting another go. At this time she was still in rehab and with no idea how she would adapt to her normal shooting position, she was unsure if she had it in her to get back into competitive shooting. She described this as a make or break moment, where if she was to get back to the level she had previously reached she would have to start from the bottom having been out of the Paralympic Pathway Programme for 3 years.
Fortunately for Lesley, when she returned she realised she still held a strong passion for shooting. In a competition in 2019 she was impressed with her results which motivated her to really focus on getting back to where she was previously. In this, she set herself a target of getting selected to compete at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, believing that in 2019 Tokyo 2020 was coming too soon.
Coming back stronger
With Paris 2024 in mind, she then began a long process of building herself physically and mentally for the challenges ahead. Her scores however were soon at a level higher than before her time out of the sport, and all of a sudden there was hope she could get selected for the Tokyo Games in 2020.
Again, fate played a cruel hand as Lesley prepared to shoot for a quota place in a competition in the United Arab Emirates, the first COVID-19 lockdown happened. Initially she felt yet again events had conspired against her and that maybe it wasn’t meant to be, but she was determined to come through yet another adverse moment in her life.
Lesley decided to make the best out of a bad situation and ensure that the lockdown period was going to work for her. She continued to train and saw her fitness and her scores improve. With the Tokyo Games postponed until 2021, hope remained that she could still gain a quota place.
This hinged on a competition in Lima in 2021, which was in doubt with other competitions having been cancelled due to the pandemic. Fortunately for Lesley, Lima went ahead where she could shoot for her second score to gain a quota place, a competition where her sister was drafted in as stand-in coach. With her sister given a crash course in what she needed to do, Lesley brought the performance she had hoped for and secured the bronze medal. It was then she knew she had almost certainly done enough to get on the plane to Tokyo.
Tokyo selection
Lesley described the immense joy of being selected, and how she was ‘absolutely buzzing’ to gain her place on the ParalympicsGB team for the Games.
It was even more sweet considering the adversity and setbacks she has had to come through, and the many times she felt like it was never going to happen.
With 3 years spent in hospital, a further amputation, months and months of rehab and hours spent in physio rooms she is well aware of how much she has done to come back stronger and earn the right to shoot in Tokyo. She admits that she had to continually pick herself up from setbacks and had to mentally get through it bit by bit.
Preparations and ambitions for Tokyo
Lesley reports that her preparations are going well ahead of travelling to Tokyo, where she has remained in Scotland to train with her coach rather than the 8 hour journey down south to England to maximise her training and minimise her travel time.
Her preparations began with a more technical focus, followed by more performance based work and this was tapered down in the last few weeks to prevent any burnout prior to the games and ensuring she is fresh and ready to compete. She also has extensive access to support around strength and conditioning, nutrition and mindset to ensure her readiness to meet the demands of the Games.
Having gone through so much to get there, she is determined to be as prepared as she can be.
In terms of her ambitions in Tokyo, she acknowledges that every athlete wants to get on the podium and she is no different and that will remain the ultimate goal.
She is also determined to enjoy the games and the experience she has worked so hard to achieve. In addition to this, she wants to leave the games a stronger person, with her confidence in herself raised a level by competing at the pinnacle of her sport.
What Lesley loves about Target Shooting?
Lesley says the thing she enjoys the most is that Target Shooting is often an individual challenge with herself. Being an individual sport, she is able to make her own decisions and relies only on herself. Because of this, she must take ownership of these decisions whether things go well or not so well.
Individual sports represent a tough mental challenge, where remaining calm, composed and focused is key – Target Shooting matches can last a long time, so maintaining concentration levels is essential for success. Add in variables such as the weather, a change in wind direction for example, can make a difference so being able to think on your feet and deal with your own emotions is key.
All this makes for a tense sport that can go down to the finest margins, and one that promises to be an exciting watch during the Tokyo Games.
Good luck Lesley
We wish Lesley and her support staff the very best of luck in Tokyo as one of the 33 Scottish Athletes representing ParalympicsGB at the Games