Aaron Heading has already set his sights on Paris after making his Olympic debut in Tokyo.

The 34-year old King's Lynn marksman shot 119 in the men's trap competition to finish 23rd, meaning he failed to progress to the final where team-mate and world champion Matt Coward-Holley claimed bronze.

Heading almost lost a leg in a motorcycle crash in 2014, subsequently missed out on a place at the Rio Games and almost retired from the sport.

He credits taking up volunteering with the Sutton Bridge Coastguard, covering the marshes and seaways of south Lincolnshire, for giving him perspective on that Rio disappointment to make his debut this week.

“I’m over the moon, I can honestly say I gave it everything," he said.

"I finished on 119 which matches my best performance this year. Having only shot in three competitions over the past 18 months with a few curveballs thrown in this year, I’m over the moon to produce that performance here.

“Okay, it wasn’t enough but this is the form I want to shoot in. You’ve got to be on your best to get there.”

“It’s a very strong field in an elite sport. The guys that are here train all the time, where they’ve probably got me is the time on the range this year."

A four-time Commonwealth Games medallist, including winning trap gold in Delhi in 2010, Heading knows how to succeed at the highest level and has also won team or pairs bronze medals at the World Championships in 2011, 2018 and 2019.

The Kings Lynn-born star, who began competing when he was just 12 years old, also became the No.1 ranked trap shooter in the world back in 2018.

“I've become an Olympian now, it's a bit like a dream,” he added.

“I’ve gone out on a journey and I’ve got here. It’s been fantastic but I wish my family and friends were here. All focus is now on Paris, there's a strong stat that most Olympic medallists achieve success at their second Games. There is just three years to go and the hard work will start straight away.

"Seeing Matt get the medal will only inspire me, he's the world champion for a reason and a great example of what we can achieve in British shooting."

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