In less than three weeks, Lexi Lagan will be competing in her second Summer Olympic Games with a collective cheer of support from her hometown of Boulder City.
“It’s a little bit of everything right now,” she said of her emotions during an interview last week at her parents’ home in Boulder City. “There have been a few times where I have gotten myself so wrapped up in emotions, that I have literally had to pause and tell myself, ‘One step at a time.’ Mostly it’s because of excitement.”
Lagan qualified for the 2020 games in Tokyo but this time around they will be held in Paris, where she will be competing in women’s air pistol and possibly a team event.
During the 2020 games, Covid-19 had become a worldwide pandemic and with it came uncertainty of whether or not the games should be held. They were, but with few spectators and distancing between athletes strictly enforced.
“I remember thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, I just qualified for the Olympics, am I even an Olympian? They’re going to cancel Tokyo.’ I was panicking,” she said. “But even though there were restrictions, it was still 100% better than the alternative (being canceled). A lot of the athletes who had competed prior kept telling me, ‘We’re so sorry you’re experiencing this for your first games.’ I just kept thinking, ‘This is amazing and I’m happy to be here.’ I tried to find the best parts and enjoy myself. I didn’t miss what I didn’t know.”
She and the other competitors took part in the opening ceremonies in front of a nearly spectator-less crowd, which won’t be the case this year. The shooting events will take place three hours outside of Paris and thus those athletes will be staying in a satellite Olympic village. Sadly, this means she will not be able to partake in the opening ceremonies. Because of the time the ceremonies conclude and the boat ride back to the shooting village, it would mean her getting just a few hours of sleep since her competition begins at 8 a.m. that next morning.
“This is why I’m very thankful I was able to experience the village lifestyle and opening ceremonies in Tokyo,” she said. “The satellite village will definitely be a different experience for me. It could be worse. The surfing competition is being held in Fiji. It’s disappointing that I won’t be there but I have been training for this the past three years so it’s important that I make every shot count and get a good night’s rest the night before.”
She will, however, be able to attend the closing ceremonies. Her parents, Barry and Jill Lagan, will be there the entire time, so they all plan to do some sightseeing as well as attend other Olympic events. On her list are rugby, fencing and beach volleyball, which is held under the Eiffel Tower.
“Even though the U.S. has more than 600 athletes, a lot of us know one another or knows someone who knows another athlete,” she said. “It’s kind of cool in that way, especially when teammates show up at other venues to cheer you on. We’re such a large and deep team but in many ways, we’re all connected. You really do feel like you’re part of Team U.S.A.”
In 2020, Lagan competed in two events but this year just one, where she is ranked No. 1 in the country. Now that she’s a seasoned Olympic athlete, how do the emotions from this time four years ago compare to those she’s feeling now?
“It’s definitely a bit different,” the 31-year-old said. “Back then I was nervous because I was told quite often, ‘These are the emotions you’re going to have,’ and when I got there, some of those emotions were there but others were very different. This time, however, I can say that I have gotten a taste of what those emotions and feelings are going to be like. But I also fully understand there will be different expectations I’ve put upon myself and as a result, different emotions.”
Saying that it’s been “one thing after another,” she admits she may not be as prepared for these games as she was four years ago. Aside from dealing with a broken bone in her shooting wrist, being sick and a major breakdown of the pistol she uses, she had to miss a lot of practice time and competitions leading up to Paris. While she does want to come away with a medal, this time she said she’s not going to put as much pressure on herself, take in every moment of the games and appreciate that she’s now a two-time Olympian, something few can say.
“It’s more about feeling good about my scores and feeling good about doing the best that I can with every single shot and allowing that to be the goal rather than gold be the goal,” she said. “If I’m putting down scores I know I can put down, I will be a podium contender.”
While Lagan, who lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado with her husband, is focused on Paris, it’s hard not to look ahead to the 2028 games, which will be held in Los Angeles.
“Oh, yes, it’s definitely a possibility,” she said. “That would be my perfect little trio of Olympics – Tokyo, Paris and Los Angeles. I’ve heard that competing in your home country is amazing.”
And while her sport may not be as physically demanding as others, the mental part of it is and then some.
“They typically say that every sport is 80% mental and 20% physical,” she said. “With shooting, we’re closer to that 90-10 split. We don’t have time to dwell on anything. Once the shot is out of the gun, you can’t suck the pellet back in. It’s out there, it’s done. Then you move on because you can’t fix the previous shot by making the next shot better. It will just make it worse.”
For the rest of her life, Lagan will have the term “Olympian” in front of her name. For the 2011 BCHS grad, that’s perfectly fine.
“It’s amazing,” she said with a wide grin. “Not many people in the world can say that.”
Ron Eland is editor of the Boulder City Review. He can be reached at reland@bouldercityreview.com or at 702-586-9523.