Mum defies odds to shoot in Glasgow
If perseverance was personified, it would be in the form of Australian Commonwealth Games shooter Gaye Shale.
The 46-year-old mother-of-three from country Victoria will compete in the women's double trap event in Glasgow next month, marking her first appearance at a major Games.
Shale's incredible path to Glasgow began more than a decade ago after her husband was killed in a freak farming accident.
She was left to run the farm and their family's seven-day-a-week bakery as well as raise her three children, all on her own.
A year after the tragedy, Shale was watching the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games when she realised something her late husband had already told her - she was good enough to compete at an international level.
Shale, who had been shooting since 19, juggled her other commitments while using what little spare time she had to train specifically for double trap.
Her hard work paid off and she was chosen in the 2004 Athens Olympics team, but the sport's quota system meant Australia didn't earn a spot for her to compete in so she didn't go.
After missing out on the 2006 Commonwealth Games, her event was dropped and Shale thought her dream of representing Australia was over.
But Shale, now a personal trainer, learned last year it was to be reintroduced in Glasgow so started training for an event she hadn't competed in for more than seven years in a last-ditch attempt to wear the green and gold.
Last month, she was named in the team.
"The emotions just overwhelmed me and I just burst into tears," she told AAP.
"It's just been a long time coming and it capped off everything I've been trying to do for years."
Shale said she hoped her story would inspire others, particularly her now-adult children.
"Regardless of what life throws at you, there's always a way," she said.
Given Shale's determination, it's little surprise she wants gold.
"I haven't got many opportunities left, so I'm going for it all," she laughed.
Her son Adam will also compete for Australia next week at the clay target world championships in Portugal.
