Mexican archer Mariana Avitia sets sight on Tokyo Olympics

Mexico's Mariana Avitia, who won a bronze medal at the 2012 London Games, has said that her focus is on qualifying for the Summer Olympics next year in Tokyo.

"I have an eagle eye, but that's not the most important thing. Many archers wear glasses, the key is to stay focused with a good mentality," the 26-year-old archer said.

Avitia achieved the dream of every world-class athlete at the age of 18, but after experiencing some setbacks, she missed out on making the Mexican Olympic team that competed at the 2016 Summer Games in Rio, reports Efe news.

Looking back at what happened, Avitia said she was focused but understood that getting to Tokyo would be hard because she had at least three rivals who were in top form and had won world medals in the sport.

"Yes, I see myself in Tokyo, but I'm going to have to work hard and get good points in qualifying. I'm not going to take a Christmas or a New Year's vacation because I want to shoot well in January, when the team will be decided," the Olympic medalist said.

Last weekend, Avitia got 73 points and finished fourth in the first round of qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Games, coming in behind world junior finalist Ana Paula Vazquez, who got 130 points; Pan American Games champion Alejandra Valencia, who accumulated 84 points; and London Games silver medallist Aida Roman, who got 74 points.

"In 2016, maybe I didn't focus well, I shot badly and the other girls were strong, but you learn from your mistakes, and that's what happened to me. Missing the Olympics is not something I want to repeat," Avitia said.

As part of her preparation, Avitia is cycling at an indoor track and doing mental exercises in which she visualizes getting scores of 10.

"The important thing is to go out motivated each day after your dream, to seize it. In 2012, I had really good form, very competitive, now I'm more mature," Avitia said.