Two area students qualify to shoot at the 2026 Junior Olympics – KCBD

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – Wolfforth’s Zach Odom and Idalou’s Teagan Chatfield are both headed to the Junior Olympics in Alabama next month to compete in rifle for South Plains Precision Shooters.
They have competed together for a few years now and say they have grown to be more than just teammates.
“She’s my best friend,” Odom said. “Zach is definitely my best friend. We’re both there to support each other, tell each other when we did something wrong, and it’s a good dynamic,” Chatfield said.
This is Odom’s first time qualifying. He will use a .22 caliber single-shot rifle to shoot at a target 55 inches from the ground that is 50 meters away, on an outside range.
He says the biggest challenge will be adjusting to a new range.
“My goal for this is to shoot and be able to read the wind and just get a good feel of the range because I’ve never been to the range in Alabama. So, just learning how to read the wind and shoot the best I can,” Odom said.
Chatfield will join him in the smallbore competition in Talladega, and she’ll also compete in the standing-60 shot timed air rifle match in Anniston, AL. She has qualified before, so she knows what to expect and what she wants to do differently this time around.
“Probably just going in knowing that I’ve qualified and I deserve to be there and I can do the best of my ability… just going into it with a better mental approach,” Chatfield said.
And when it comes to advice, she’s keeping it simple.
“Just don’t overthink it at this point. Just untie the vine and don’t let go,” Chatfield said.
There’s also more to the sport than many people realize—from equipment that can be adjusted down to the smallest detail.
“Everything here moves and can be fine-tuned to fit the shooter well,” Odom explained.
These athletes even have specialized shooting suits that help keep them steady.
“Every part of your body moves whether you’re thinking about it or not, and that can affect your shot. It can change it from being a 10 to a 9,” Odom said.
Chatfield says the sport deserves more recognition for the work it takes.
“Personally, I don’t think it gets enough credit for as much effort as athletes put into it, as much mental and physical effort that it takes,” she said.
Their team may be small, but the friendship behind it has made a big difference—especially for Odom.
“I sort of reached a place where I felt like I didn’t really have any friends, and coming into 4H, I realized that these are some of the closest people I’ve gotten to grow with and know—and honestly, if I could go back and do it all again, I would,” Odom said.
This may be an individual sport, but Odom and Chatfield agree that having your people with you matters when the pressure hits.
“Because when you’re all alone looking at that score sheet, it can kind of get—it can get in your head, so to say. And just having the people there to support me and push me further than I could have ever gotten on my own,” Odom said.
Their smallbore competition in Alabama starts on April 8. Teagan will also shoot in Anniston on April 11.
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