James Hall's progression through his shooting career has gradually taken him up the ladder and to the final goal, the United States Olympic Team.
When talking with JSUGamecockSports.com from his home during the recent COVID-19 Pandemic, the former Jacksonville State Rifle All-American referred to the saying "Eat an elephant one bite at a time," as a prevalent one throughout his competition days.
The saying, coined by renowned South African Anglican cleric Desmond Tutu, a, refers to everything in life that seems daunting, overwhelming, and even impossible can be accomplished gradually by taking just a little at a time.
For Hall, it refers to his gradual steps through what has been a storied shooting career that saw him leading JSU to new heights almost 20 years ago. James Hall
Hall, who was a member of the Gamecock rifle team from 2003-06, has continued to be active in competitive shooting since departing the program, but he has made a switch in his arsenal. After spending many years concentrating on shooting an air rifle, the Anniston, Ala., native made the transition to shooting an air pistol.
That switch has led him to the world stage as a member of the U.S. Olympic Team, for who he will compete in the summer of 2021 after COVID-19 pushed the 2020 Tokyo Olympics back a year.
"I started to take up the sport of pistol after graduating and took the same principles that I used in rifle and applied them to pistol," Hall said. "It is very similar to what is shot in the NCAA. It is 60 shots for air rifle and it is the same for air pistol.
Hall made his first attempt at one of the coveted spots on the USA team in 2012 and in 2016. He finished third overall in 2016 and set his eyes toward 2020. He had an inkling that he could take another shot at making the USA Olympic Team in air pistol.
"I started to take it serious for the next few years because at the time I was just dabbling in the sport because it was fun while I was working for the Civilian Marksmanship Program," he said. "I started training on a regular basis and made several World Cup teams."
Hall's first achievement on his way to the earning an Olympic spot was when he won the first quota spot for Team USA after winning gold at the Championship of the Americas in November 2018 in Guadalajara, Mexico. He will be joined by Nick Mowrer of Phoenix, Ariz., as the two members of the Team USA's pistol squad.
With the postponement of the 2020 Olympics, USA Shooting announced that people that have already qualified during the trials will be the members of the team in Tokyo in 2021. The second part of the trials concluded in early March after the first section of the trials, which was completed in December. Hall finished second with 2,295 in the trials held at Fort Benning, Ga.
"This has been a dream of mine, especially getting so close in previous years," added Hall. "It was about redefining some small goals. It started with making the World Cup teams and then the Pan American Team, which leads to the Olympic team."
The delay might have come at a good time for Hall as he has started a new job in Columbia, Mo., this spring and having a family to relocate.
"It will give me some time to realize what I have done, and I am blessed in the fact that I have a range in the basement of my house in Missouri," Hall continued. "Most shooting ranges are closed, and some folks don't have the opportunity that I do to continue to train and fine tune their skills."
Hall is no stranger to championships. He was a member of the 2005 Jax State team that won the NCAA Smallbore National Championship after finishing second overall to Army with an aggregate mark of 4.658.
He was named the Ohio Valley Conference Smallbore and Air Rifle Most Valuable Player in 2005 and 2006 and helped start a string of five consecutive OVC titles for JSU. Hall earned All-OVC honors for smallbore competition in 2004 and 2005 before making first-team all-conference in both smallbore and air rifle in 2006. He received elite honors as an NRA All-American all four years with second-team smallbore honors his first two years before first-team smallbore and second-team air rifle honors as a junior and senior.
"Being on the rifle team during those years was some of the best memories that I have," Hall said. "We had some really good teams while I was there and it was some dynamic teams. I feel very blessed that I had an opportunity at JSU and the opportunities that rifle gave me."
He was mentored by former Gamecock coaches Gerald DeBoy, Jim Skidmore and current JSU Head Rifle Coach Ron Frost. Following his collegiate career, Hall stayed involved with the program as a graduate assistant under Frost. He stayed near the sport of rifle with his job in the Civilian Marksmanship Program.
Hall reminisced about shooting in the 2006 NCAA Rifle Championships and what he and his teammates accomplished at JSU.
"We put in a lot of work during that season and it got a little emotional seeing my teammates as I was in the last relay and thinking that – this is it," remembered Hall. "It was a feeling of how much we had done in the four years that I had at JSU."
After a solid collegiate career, a great family life and continued success on the international stage, Hall's next bite will be representing the Red, White and Blue on the ultimate stage.
When Hall represents Team USA in Tokyo in 2021, he will be the first Gamecock to represent the United States in the Olympics and will join Great Britain's Danny Willett (Golf in 2016) as JSU's only Olympians.
*For Mike Parris' full interview with Hall, check JSUGamecockSports.com/AtHome on Wednesday for their episode of At Home With The Gamecocks presented by Ford.
