Every shooter needs enough, even Jasna Sekaric.
Staring at the screen from which she could see her marks, Sekaric slapped on her own face. "Wake up", she murmured.
Her coach gave her a bottle of coke for refreshment, but she still couldn't find her sharpness.
The 43-year-old Serbian markswoman then chose to walk out of the stadium, listening to pop music and chatting with people, something to "make her mad and have more strength".
"Today it is hard for me. I can't wake up. I didn't sleep well these nights," she complained about seven-hour time difference between China and Serbia.
Gold medalist in the 1988 Seoul Olympics who raked in three silver medals in following Olympics at women's 10-meter air pistol, Sekaric arrived at Beijing for the 29th Olympiad this Monday.
Due to tiredness, she slept well at the first night.
But when the second night came, her nightmare started.
"I went asleep at around half past one, and woke up early in the morning," she recalled, "They say normally the third and fourth day are the worst."
Sekaric is not the only shooter troubled by time difference.
Coming on Sunday, European Championship winner Norwegian riflist Are Hansen was also performing poorly during his training. "His best score of 10-meter air rifle was 703.8 points, which he achieved at a national contest," said his coach Christian Lilleng. World record of the event was 703.1 points.
When Romanian shooter Alin George Moldoveanu was practicing, his coach couldn't help yawning from time to time.
And the veteran Serbian athlete had to wrap up her training earlier than planned.
"I was awake a little bit. But I still feel weak. I need power," she said, "I planned to have another training in the 25-meter range, but I cannot do anymore today."
However, she didn't appear quite worried. She will compete in women's 10-meter air pistol and 25-meter pistol events.
"There are nine days to go," she said, "I still have time."
(Xinhua News Agency August 2, 2008)