Shooting for the stars: Waterford-area woman an international trapshooting competitor

When Maddy Bernau first shot a gun at age 9, she didn’t like it at all. She didn’t like the kick or the feeling, and she had a strange way of holding the gun that meant it recoiled into her face, resulting in some nasty bruises. “I had a welt on my face for the first year I shot,” she said. Eleven years later, Bernau, now 20, is an international trapshooting competitor with her sights set on the 2020 or 2024 Olympics. This year has been jam-packed with competitions. Bernau, of the Town of Waterford, has shot in four tournaments already this year and has three more on her schedule before the biggest of them all: the International Shooting Sport Federation World Championships in Changwon, South Korea, scheduled for Aug. 31-Sept. 15. In May, Bernau won the gold medal in women’s trapshooting at the International Junior Grand Prix in Porpetto, Italy. She represents USA Shooting’s national trapshooting team in competitions...more