Ada Korkhin, a talented teenage pistol shooter poised to make her Olympic debut this summer in Paris, began her journey into competitive shooting at America’s oldest active gun club in Woburn, Massachusetts, at the age of 9.

“My dad brought me here because there is a Junior Program, so I went one day and I thought it was a lot of fun, so I kept coming here,” Korkhin, now 19, recalled. “I was doing a ton of other sports. I did soccer, gymnastics, a bit of ballet, and even played piano, so this was very different from what I had done before and obviously it’s a very unique sport.”

Soon after starting, Korkhin competed in her first national competition, though initially, discussing her sport could be awkward due to the stigma surrounding it. "I had to preface this with it’s a small gun, we’re really safe, there’s a bunch of rules about it.”

Safety and discipline are paramount in her training. Learning early on about the responsibility of handling firearms, Korkhin credits her sport for instilling valuable life lessons. “It’s a big responsibility to obviously be holding a gun of any size, especially as a young girl, and another thing is the sport takes a lot of discipline to keep up with practicing or remain focused. I think that’s true in a lot of different sports.”

Her father, Yakov Korkhin, supported her passion by building a target at home for daily training with an air pistol, fostering her dedication to practice five times a week. Korkhin's commitment to shooting grew organically; she didn't set out with Olympic dreams but found joy in competition and steadily progressed through international events, starting with her first in Germany after middle school.

“It was in Germany and that was a really great experience,” Korkhin recalled. “It was very surreal obviously going to such a big competition. Whenever I take a step forward in my shooting career, I don’t really comprehend how big it is, so I think that was also beyond my comprehension. I think I ended up shooting a personal best there which was really cool.”

Success followed with notable achievements like a gold medal at the 2024 Championship of the Americas (CAT) Games in Women’s 25m Sport Pistol Team in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and a bronze medal from the 2023 ISSF Junior World Championship in Women’s 25m Sport Pistol in Changwon, South Korea.

Throughout her competitive journey, Korkhin has remained loyal to her custom .22 pistol adorned with stickers from her various competitions since childhood, emphasizing its reliability and sentimental value.

Her discipline shines in the precision and steady hand required for Women’s 25m pistol shooting competitions, focusing on the mental aspect she finds fulfilling. “I’m not a very athletic person, so I like that I can still compete in a sport that requires more mental focus than physical strength.”

Reflecting on her recent qualification for the Paris Olympics, Korkhin's focus and dedication were evident. “I think that was very helpful for my mental state when I was competing because I didn’t put as much pressure on myself to perform a certain way,” she shared. “My parents and my coach told me after I finished the final that I was going and I didn’t believe them at first, but after that I was just so happy. I was in shock, I think I still am.”

Back at the Woburn range where her journey began, Korkhin expressed pride in her roots. “I’m just really proud to come from this range. I know a bunch of my other teammates have come from this range and they have also done great things, so I’m really proud to be from here.”

When not training in Massachusetts, Korkhin joins Ohio State University's pistol team under the guidance of Coach Libby Calahan, herself an Olympian. “She was definitely someone I look up to,” Korkhin remarked. “I hope to continue going to the Olympics. I am definitely going to continue competing for as long as I can, the great thing about this sport is that you can compete for a long time, so that’s what I plan to do.”