Ásgeir Sigurgeirsson
Icelandic shooting champion targets international success
Guðrún Inga Helgadóttir og Hannes Orri Ásmundsson
Iceland's first Olympic pistol shooter
Ásgeir Sigurgeirsson is only twenty-nine years old and is already the best Icelandic pistol shooter in history. Having won a string of national titles in the last couple of years, the Icelandic pistol marksman is now looking for success on an international level.
"My dad felt that I needed a hobby."
Ásgeir was raised in Kópavogur, a southern suburb of the capital, Reykjavík. When he was seventeen years old his father encouraged him to take up the sport, because he felt that he needed a hobby. His father being a shooter himself, took Ásgeir to one practise and there was no going back after that.
Mental strength
Shooting is not so much about physical strength, the mental strain is so much more. Although, it takes some time to perfect holding a one kilo gun steady. Ásgeir says that concentration is key. Shooting is like meditation, it's just a feeling.