'Participating in SLI is better than normal competition, ' says 50-year-old Czech trap shooter David Kostelecky

New Delhi, July 23 (IANS) Czech trap shooter David Kostelecky, at 50, is one of the oldest athletes to have expressed interest in the upcoming Shooting League of India (SLI). The two-time Olympic gold medallist (gold in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and silver in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics), who began shooting at the age of 14, turned 50 this year but remains as excited as ever to participate in this first-of-its-kind tournament.

Kostelecky explained that his love for team events is the primary reason for his excitement about the league. "I think it is more about the teams than about individual shooters. And I love it because this is what I am missing in our sport or my career," the Czech shooter said.

"I am excited to be a part of a team and try to win it together, because all my life I have competed for myself and my country. I think our sport needs more team events. I also love to shoot the mixed events at the World Cups. Thus, for me, participating in this league is better than normal competition. So this was my motivation for sure," he added.

Having started shooting 36 years ago, David also spoke about how he has adjusted his fitness regimen over the years to ensure he remains fit enough to continue in the sport. Drawing motivation from Giovanni Pellielo, who recently won a gold medal in the 2025 ISSF Trap World Cup in Lonato at the age of 55, Kostelecky believes that physical and mental fitness can help one achieve excellence, regardless of age.

Kostelecky, who became the oldest Czech player to win an Olympic medal in 2020, said, "I am happy to say that I think I have changed my fitness routine over the years. I have tried to be stronger also because I thought it was missing. I have seen the change it has brought to my sport. And obviously, when I was young, it was easy for me to stay fit normally, but now I am already ageing, so I have to do more than before. So I try to control my food and do regular exercise, play some tennis and padel to stay fit."

He further revealed how, back in 2016, he was facing issues with his eyes and could not see properly, thus being on the verge of ending his career. However, he found an optometrist who helped him with his eyesight, which further allowed him to shoot for nine more years.

"Vision is most important in our sport. So there is a guy who can check your vision in the sport, not to make you read perfectly, but they can measure how your eyes are behaving in the sport, how you see the depth of the space, and stuff like this. They can also improve it. And it is really working because I had a lot of problems with my eyes. I am using contact lenses now, and this guy saved my career in 2016," the 2015 Larnaca World Cup gold medallist revealed.

He signed off by expressing his excitement to play alongside some of the best shooting talent in the world and said, “I think it is really great for the community to have an event like this, because despite seeing somebody for 10, 15 years, you do not know him. But now, if you participate with him in the team, you can become real friends and buddies. So that is really great, and I think this can put all the people together."

--IANS

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