Georgia teen scores world skeet title, shoots for Olympics

PINE MOUNTAIN - She gathered herself, took a breath, and called for the target to be released. <br> <br> She aimed her shotgun. And she missed. <br> <br> It was in a sport that requires its athletes to be nearly flawless a disheartening way for Leigh Ann Crozier to begin her run in one of the world&#39;s biggest skeet shooting tournaments. <br> <br> ``I missed my very first target,&#39;&#39; said Crozier, 19, of Pine Mountain, Ga. ``But it made me really mad, made me work that much harder.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> When the shooting was done, Crozier was the runaway winner in the women&#39;s junior division of the International Shooting Sports Federation&#39;s Shotgun World Championships on Cyprus, an island in the Mediterranean Sea. <br> <br> She nailed her next 24 shots, and only missed four of her 75 attempts in the tournament, the biggest skeet shooting competition in the world this year. <br> <br> ``When I shot my first practice round, I had a feeling I was going to do good,&#39;&#39; said Crozier, whose effort would have been good enough to make the finals against the adult women in the tournament. ``I had the most confidence I&#39;ve ever had in my life.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Success is nothing new for Crozier. <br> <br> Her biggest win before the world championships was a gold medal at the 2000 Junior Olympics. <br> <br> ``She&#39;s worked very hard,&#39;&#39; said Todd Graves, a bronze medalist at the 2000 Olympics who trains Crozier at Fort Benning, an army base near Columbus, Ga. ``She trains as much as she can, and we&#39;ve really worked on the mental side (of shooting). That&#39;s the hardest part of it, and she&#39;s worked hard at it.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Crozier began skeet shooting when she was 13, after watching her older brother compete in tournaments. His interest soon faded, but hers grew. <br> <br> ``Some of the Army guys told me I should shoot skeet because there weren&#39;t really women in it,&#39;&#39; she said. ``I thought it was neat.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> She began splitting her time between training at Fort Benning and a shooting range on her family&#39;s property. <br> <br> She also started working with Graves, who immediately spotted her potential. <br> <br> ``She looked like she was almost a natural,&#39;&#39; said Graves. ``She just needed to work. She&#39;s a quick learner, and she&#39;s not going to give up.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Since high school, Crozier has sacrificed to reach world-class status in her sport. <br> <br> She quit the dance team and passed on a chance to play volleyball at her school, both so she could focus more time and energy on her shooting. <br> <br> More recently, she&#39;s taken a temporary break from classes at Southern Union College so she could practice for competitions. <br> <br> Crozier&#39;s next goal is making the 2004 U.S. Olympic team a tall order considering that there&#39;s only one opening for a female shooter. <br> <br> ``I don&#39;t really expect to make the team,&#39;&#39; she said. ``I&#39;m young, so I&#39;m looking more to 2008. But I&#39;m going to work real hard.&#39;&#39;