RIO DE JANEIRO _ It's been a wild, happy ride for David Higgins.
In April, he became the first-ever Air Force Academy cadet-athlete to qualify for the Olympics. In June, he was sitting with fellow graduates at Falcon Stadium, and Barack Obama mentioned him by name.
"David Higgins, a marksman who's going to the Olympics in Rio, bring home the gold, David!" Obama said with a laugh.
On Friday morning in Rio, Higgins was standing at the Olympic shooting venue. He had just finished 40th in 50-meter prone rifle shooting, failing to make the finals.
The happy ride ended, for now.
"I've been living on Cloud Nine all summer," Higgins said. "I'll have to come back to earth in the next couple days."
A shooter must remain calm. Nerves get the hands shaking, and shaking hands translate into poor scores. Higgins worked diligently to prepare himself for the weight of the Olympics, but he still wasn't ready for what he encountered.
"The pressure," he said, "you can't simulate that. You can't practice that. It's just a completely different beast than I've ever handled before. The pressure was there constantly.
"I was able to relax myself, but it was crazy. Usually after a few shots, you're able to relax on every single shot and you're ready to go. The pressure was there the entire match."
Higgins was not complaining about the pressure. He hopes this 2016 Olympic experience will serve as a valuable prelude to a trip to the 2020 Tokyo Games. He shot 617.7 in the prelims. He needed a score of 624.8 to earn a spot in the eight-shooter finals.
"It was very cool to experience that pressure," he said.
He's optimistic about shooting in Tokyo. He has four years to improve, he said, and he has strong reason for hope. He defeated Olympic great Matt Emmons in the Olympic Trials to earn this trip to Rio.
Higgins has been shooting competitively since he was 13, and his parents _ David Sr. and Pherby _ usually have been there beside him. He remembers arising with his parents at 4:30 a.m. on Saturdays for 100-mile rides to shooting competitions.
David Sr. and Pherby were by his side again on Friday morning.
"As a father you never knew years ago when he got started where this journey would end up," David Sr. said. "We are blessed to be here. Here we are in Rio at the Olympics. It's amazing."
Higgins has cross-commissioned into the Marine Corps. He will report to basic school in Virginia Oct. 2 to begin a six months of training to become an infantry platoon leader.
