Olympics: Marksman Guns For Myanmar's Maiden Medal

YANGON,(APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 2nd Augst,2016) - Standing stock-still, right arm outstretched, eyes unblinking, Myanmar's only Olympic qualifier squeezes the trigger and sends a pellet slamming into a paper target -- a skill honed during \military service in the formerly junta-run nation.

Ye Tun Naung, 33, is gunning for a medal in Rio this summer, where he travels as an outside bet for a podium finish in two pistol shooting events. A medal would be a first for his impoverished Southeast Asian nation, which was run for decades by a junta that lined its pockets while all other areas of society -- including sport -- shrivelled.

But in a twist of fortune, the junta years accidentally unlocked Ye Tun Naung's hidden talent. He stumbled upon a knack for shooting during mandatory target practice sessions in the navy, an institution he joined to escape poverty and a lack of jobs in central Myanmar. He first picked up a pistol in 2005, stunning more experienced military marksmen with victories at naval competitions.