Seonaid McIntosh on health battles, sacrifices and Olympic dreams

Here, air rifle shooter Seonaid McIntosh and her dad Donald reflect on her journey so far.

SEONAID

I remember being dragged around the country when my parents were competing and training [mum Shirley won four medals at the Commonwealth Games; Seonaid’s older sister Jennifer is also a Olympian], and thinking, "This is boring. I don’t want to do this. I’ve spent enough time on ranges, and they’re all cold."

As a kid, I played tennis and did gymnastics. I was a drummer in a pipe band and absolutely loved it, so I always thought that was what I was going to do. My parents were really supportive. They said, "If you want to do shooting, that’s great, but don’t feel like you have to just because that’s what we did."

It’s not the most lucrative sport in the world. My mum worked really, really hard to put my older sister Jennifer and me through private school. A lot of sacrifices went into our education.

When I first started shooting, I was trying to catch up and beat Jen. We had a rivalry, but it’s an advantage to have someone you can battle against. I broke some of the records she set.

I have rheumatoid arthritis – the fear of a flare-up is constant

My dad’s been my coach since 2016. I’m eternally grateful for the things he does for me. He’s driven me all over the country. I’ve got an entire suitcase full of kit that I use for my competitions, and it weighs about 28kg. My dad says, "That’s the only reason I’m here. You don’t need me as a coach. I’m just here to carry your bags."

Olympic-style air rifle shooting is so different from club shooting in Britain, where most of the sport was just old men. Everything is colourful instead of grey. It’s also a sport where the women are better than the men, which is awesome.

I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis when I was 17. It started in my toes, but it was mostly my knees that were the problem. I couldn’t fully straighten or bend my legs and it was difficult to put any weight on them. It’s impacted a few competitions. I got it in my wrist, and then I couldn’t shoot. At least when it was in my legs, I could still shoot lying down. It was the constant fear of: what if I get a flare-up at the wrong moment?

In 2019, I also got diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, which drains my energy. I’m always worried about what I’m eating, and if it’s going to set me off. I try to have a balanced diet to make sure I get enough protein, carbs and good fats, but I have a thing for mint chocolate chip ice cream…

When my health isn’t the best, and I’m frustrated and sad, my dad’s there to give me a hug. Other times, he gives me a kick up the bum and reminds me I’ve got a job to do and to get on with it. If competitions don’t go well, the best thing in the world is to be able to turn around and cry into my dad.

Last year, my boyfriend Grant bought me a soft toy duck that I named Ducky. I had surgery last year and have been in and out of doctor’s appointments constantly, so he’s become my emotional support duck. My mental health after Covid had been bad, and my health has been at such a low point. I’m really proud that I didn’t just quit, even though I really wanted to, and I’ve fought my way back. I’ll keep going until I can’t.

I dyed my hair blue in 2017, which is when I won my first senior medal. I don’t think I’ve had a year yet where I haven’t won one, so I can’t get rid of it now – it’s lucky. I’ve been wearing a blue hair extension ponytail, and I will still have blue hair at the Olympics!

DONALD

I grew up in Elgin, where my dad joined a local shooting club for recreation. I then studied at the University of Edinburgh, which was the best place in Britain if you wanted to be a rifle shooter. That’s where Seonaid now trains and I’m back working in the same room where I met my wife Shirley nearly 40 years ago.

For a long time, Seonaid didn’t want anything to do with shooting. That was her older sister Jennifer’s thing – she competed in the 2012 Olympics. Shirley and Seonaid went as spectators and that was the first time Seonaid saw Olympic shooting in its full glory. She came home and said, "Can I try this?" She was a natural. It was tough at times for Jen when her little sister started beating her.

We made no effort to steer either of them into shooting. But it’s been an absolute privilege to work with my children. It’s a difficult one, because the lines are blurred between father and coach, so it’s not a standard coach/athlete relationship by any means.

It’s nerve-racking watching Seonaid compete. I sit and take notes, I write down every shot that’s fired – where it’s gone, what the score is. I’m usually sitting with headphones in listening to classic rock on shuffle, because that keeps me vaguely sane.

Seonaid lost most of the 2016 season due to arthritis flare-ups. She’s been through the mill with that. I continue to be amazed about how open she is about it. It’s hard as a parent watching your child suffer.

In preparation for the Olympics, I took Seonaid’s air rifle and her smaller rifle to the manufacturers in Italy to get them serviced. Every rifle is different, and every batch of ammunition is different, so you need to do lots of testing. When you’re looking at potentially 0.2mm being the difference between a medal and no medal, you’ve got to spend a lot of time on this.

The Olympics were a dream for Shirley and me, but it was just not achievable. Sometimes it feels normal that not just one, but both, of our daughters are Olympians – that this is the world we’ve ended up working and living in. Other times, I’ll think about it and go, "What? How did that happen?"

Seonaid is competing in the 10m mixed team air rifle (Sat 27th July), 10m air rifle (from Sun 28th July) and 50m rifle 3P (from Thu 1st Aug) competitions

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