Whitley Collyn Loper's career as an Olympic athlete began at the age of nine when her dad first introduced her to sporting clays. She soon fell in love with the sport, and at age eleven, joined Birmingham's Southern Skeet and Trap Club. Shortly afterward, she moved her training to Atlanta, Georgia and began her official training in Olympic Trap with Bill Erdoss.

For the next two years, Collyn's dad took her from Birmingham to Atlanta every weekend to train. Over the next few years, Collyn increased her winnings in the junior division. At thirteen, she and her dad traveled to Colorado Springs, Colorado, home of the Olympic training center, for her first National Competition. Her journey to the Olympics had begun.

At the age of sixteen, competing in the women's division, she shot her first of two Olympic selection matches. After winning gold, and being tied with Army Marksmanship Unit Staff Sergeant Joetta Dement in the second match, Collyn came out the victor by one target. At seventeen, Collyn made the 2004 Olympic Shotgun Team. She traveled to Athens and placed fourth in the competition.

Collyn Loper is currently nineteen years old and attends Auburn University as a Chemical Engineering major. She is competing strongly. Her goal is to compete in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. The selection process is only a year away, and Collyn is training diligently.

Without support, Collyn cannot attend the 2008 Olympics. The funds needed for training, traveling, and attending the Olympic trials are greatly needed. Please help Collyn Loper secure her dream to place in the Olympics by donating to her cause.

"There is a long road ahead of me, to accomplish my goal of representing the United States in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and watching our flag rise from the medals podium. Only one woman can earn the right to represent our shooting team in Olympic trap shooting, and my goal is to be this Olympian."

Collyn Loper, 2006.

PS. Also, Collyn loves to support, by providing her time, the Catch a Dream Foundation- - www.catchadream.org