This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
After winning the gold medal in the compound mixed division of stage 3 of the Archery World Cup on Saturday, Colombian shooter Sara Lopez had less than five minutes to regroup before heading out to shoot for the compound women's bronze medal.
She appeared to be as calm and steady as possible.
"The wind is picking up, but [Lopez] doesn't seem to care," said the announcer as Lopez shot a perfect bullseye.
After winning the match 146 to 145 over Korea's Song Yun Soo and exiting the field at the Easton Salt Lake Archery Center, Lopez's steady exterior melted away.
"Look," she said holding out her hands, which were shaking uncontrollably. "I can't believe it."
Some would be surprised to see Lopez as nervous as she was, for she is the No. 1-ranked female archer in the world and was undefeated in 2015 and 2016.
Still, someone who didn't know Lopez or her accomplishments could think this was her first big win.
Her breakout season was in 2013, the year she made her first national team. That year she won gold in the Belek 2013 World Archery Championship with her team and won gold at the WUXI 2013 World Archery Youth Championships individually and with her team.
Though she had early career success, Lopez did not plan on becoming an archer.
"I was born in a very small city, and I didn't even know what archery was," said Lopez. "So when I started no one believed in our team. Now we are the best team in Colombia."
She began shooting when she was 13 years old alongside her brother, whose best friend was an archer. When Lopez first joined her team she was the only female.
From that moment on, Lopez has been a trail blazer for women in the sport — shooting the highest score for men and women (1,424) and being the first woman to win the World Cup.
Lopez's achievements don't stop there. She is also in pursuit of a medical degree.
"My biggest dream was to be the No. 1 archer in the world and a doctor. I didn't plan for both of my dreams to happen at the same time," said Lopez. "This year is all about archery, next year will be 50-50 with medical school and archery. I started medical school when I was 17 so I should have graduated by now, but I'm stuck in the middle."
While balancing her dreams of medicine and archery is difficult right now, Lopez hopes to find a way to combine the two by ultimately becoming a doctor of a archery or soccer team.
For now, however, all of her focus is on archery and finishing out the World Cup strong. At 22, Lopez is holding her own against, and perhaps even surpassing, those she once looked up to.
"When I started winning and doing well I was really young," said Lopez. "I looked at all of the archers that were shooting, and I said I want to be like them someday. I want to be in that place. Now it is happening. They are all my friends and I am either shooting with them or against them.
Twitter: @kendra__andrews