‘I am fighting alone,” said skeet shooter Sutiya Jiewchaloemmit, the first Thai athlete to qualify for next year’s Olympics.
Sutiya became the first Thai to win a ticket to the Rio Olympics after finishing fourth at the ISSF World Cup in Cyprus two weeks ago.
The 28-year-old from Sa Kaeo will be making her third straight Olympic appearance after competing at Beijing 2008 and London 2012.
“After I qualified for the Olympics, my coach and I felt relieved and happy that we did it as planned,” she said.
“I worked very hard. I barely had a day off for months. My hard work paid off handsomely.”
Apart from her effort, Sutiya credited her coach Andrea Filippetti, the coach of the Italy national youth team, for his ability to push her skill to a higher level.
She started working with the Italian earlier this year after parting company with her longtime coach Jan Henrik Heinrich of Germany.
“Both are good coaches. I was with Heinrich for a long time and just wanted new ideas and techniques,’’ she said.
“In the beginning, I struggled a bit to adjust to a new coach and new training plans.”
“However, I began seeing improvement in my game after working with Andrea for a few months. I am a much better shooter now.”
She admitted earning a ticket to Rio was much harder than on the previous two occasions.
Apart from tough opponents to beat, Sutiya struggled to get funds to support herself during her training abroad.
Although she is the most successful athlete in the Skeet and Trap Shooting Association of Thailand’s 45-year history, she said that she did not get enough support from the association.
“I asked them for support before I went to train and qualified for the Olympics. It was a pity because I got nothing,” she said.
“I had to find sponsorship. I had to hire coach and pay for equipment and travel fees.”
She said that she spent more than six million baht a year with Singha Corporation her major sponsor.
While she has received support from Singha since 2007, it is not enough.
“I am grateful to my current sponsor but it will be great if I can get more support from other parties,’’ Sutiya said.
“It seems I am fighting alone. My mom told me that she had built a boat for me and I have to steer it myself now.”
In an attempt to find money to cover her expenses in the build-up to the 2016 Games, Sutiya recently met Sakol Wannapong, governor of the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT), who promised to give her support.
“The governor understands the situation between me and the association,’’ she said.
“He promises to find a solution so that I can get proper treatment to vie for a medal in Brazil.”
The shooter, who came fifth in the final at the 2008 Olympics, said that she should have been treated better by the association because she has done so much for the association and also her country.
“A lot of players who get tickets to the Olympics are from big countries like China and the US,’’ she said.
“We should be proud Thailand can stand among those countries and more support should be given to our athletes. Personally, I want to train in Thailand to save money but there are no good coaches and facilities.”
Looking ahead to the 2016 Olympics, Sutiya said she hopes it will be third time lucky for her.
Working with Filippetti, 39, will boost her chances of securing a podium finish in Rio, she said.
“My plan is to work more on the technical details of my shooting and on strengthening my mental toughness, so I’m ready for the Olympics,’’ she said.
“After getting a berth, my next goal is to be on the podium. It will be tough but I have to fight.”