Katelyn Abeln, a graduate of South Paulding High School, is heading to Paris this summer to compete in her very first Olympics. Abeln will get a shot at helping her team to victory this summer.
But then, at 23, she has a lot of experience with shot-taking and will compete in the Women’s 10m Air Pistol on July 27 and the Women’s 25m Sport Pistol on August 2.
Last week Abeln got a sendoff at Three Strands Vineyard and Winery on Willow Springs Road in Dallas and 11 Alive News was there to cover the story.
After narrowly missing a spot in the Tokyo Olympics four years ago, she was selected as an alternate that did not travel to Tokyo. This time Abeln has now qualified for the two pistol events. “It’s a dream come true,” Abeln told 11 Alive News. “My goal has always been to qualify for the Olympics in sport pistol. To make it in two events is incredible.”
Her very first match was as a Junior Olympic qualifier. Since then, Abeln has competed around the world and has won several medals including a silver medal in 2018 at the World Championships. Abeln says she started competitive shooting on the Paulding County 4-H BB gun team when she was 10. At 13 she tried air pistol and fell in love with it. She remains drawn to the complexity of the sport and the challenge.
“The challenges while competing are pretty different for each match and depend on the specific range, travel time, weather conditions and more,” she said. “Every range is different so the biggest thing is to be adaptable.”
Abeln graduated from South Paulding High School and earned a Bachelor’s in Public Health in 2023 at Ohio State University. She’s currently a first-year graduate student at Ohio State, where she’s studying Public Health and Epidemiology.
She’s also a key member of the university's pistol team, which has won in national championships. Abeln led the Ohio State Buckeyes to four straight intercollegiate Pistol National Championships taking top shooter in the last two.
Training is a rigorous part of Abeln's routine, which she manages with being a graduate student.
“I train about five to six days a week, about three to four hours a day right now. I balance that with classes and homework and looking for internships and stuff like that,” Abeln said.
But as she prepares for the biggest stage of her career, Abeln remains focused on her goals and she says her family and coaches are helping her prepare for every shot.
“It’s a wild dream of mine to make an Olympic team, so the fact that I did it twice, it’s really amazing,” Abeln said.
Shooting competitions will be held at the Chateauroux Shooting Centre in Chateauroux, France. Chateauroux is three hours south of Paris. Athletes will stay in mini Olympic Villages that have been set up in three different boarding schools throughout Chateauroux.
Katelyn will travel to Paris on July 20th. She will process in Paris, receive her Olympic gear, and then head down to Chateauroux. After the competition, she will return to Paris and stay there until August 12th. Due to the competition schedule, Abeln will not be attending the Opening Ceremonies but she will be in Paris to attend the closing ceremonies.
The Summer Olympic Games in Paris celebrates its opening ceremony on July 26 and closes on August 11. For more information on the U.S. Olympic team visit teamusa.com.