A “NEVER GIVE UP” GIRL

A 13-year-old girl from Urdaneta City who started practical shooting as a hobby when she was barely11 years old, is already an accomplished international junior lady shooter.

Meet Jrellah Xy Maximo who will be Grade 9 at MAV School of Multiple Intelligence in Urdaneta City in the next school year.

She competed in Thailand in November last year participated in by 76 shooters, where she placed second in the pre-match, and was fifth in the main match.

In an interview during the Shoot-For-A-Cause Level 1 PPSA Invitational Sanction Match project of the Provincial Advisory Group For Police Transformation and Development (PAGPTD) on June 2-3, Xy, as she is fondly called by people, told local newsmen that it was her mom who inspired her to be a shooter.

Xy said her family is into unique and exciting sports like motocross riding, and it was her mom’s dream to be a professional shooter.

“Actually, it happened unexpectedly in my life,” the girlish shooter said in between giggles.

She said she thoroughly enjoyed the first time she tried shooting at the range that it eventually became her hobby during the pandemic.

She remembered being nervous when she held a gun for the first time. “I was only 11 years old then and it was rare for a girl like me to be holding one,” she said. It was her supportive parents’ encouragement that made her overcome her nervousness and soon began shooting comfortably, hitting her targets.

“When I got alpha alpha (meaning she can hit her target accurately), I said, “Mommy I already like this. This is it”,” Xy said. Her first gun was a cal. 22 rifle and then to a pistol.

Her mom hired trainers to hone her skills and soon learned to adopt a “never give-up” attitude. “Parang nasa puso ko na po sya eh, parang ayaw ko na po syang iwan,” she said.

Xy has earned several awards and trophies, including being a champion in a previous competition in Lingayen, as a testament to her skills. In all competitions that she had joined, she always landed in top 10.

She is training regularly today in preparation for competition next year in Colombia and in in 2025 in South Africa. Throughout, she’s learning that time management is the key to be able to cope with her studies as well.

To those who want to be like her, she gave this piece of advice: “Continue and continue and continue…there are many struggles before you can reach your goal but don’t give up,” she stressed. (Eva Visperas)

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