Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Buddhist Mindfulness Training Wins and Olympic Gold Medal


Kim Jang-Mi says Buddhist mindfulness training won her an Olympic Gold



 Sky Sports reported that South Korean teenager Kim Jangmi beat reigning Olympic champion Chen Ying of China with her final round to win a gold medal in the women's 25m air pistol. The 19-year-old set an Olympic record in qualifying. Then in the final, she shined with a five-shot final round of 51.8, including a perfect bullseye of 10.9, to beat Chen from Beijing.

On August 7, 2012 Emi Hailey Hayakawa reported for The Buddhist Channel "Kim Jang-Mi credits Buddhist mindfulness training for Olympic gold." It is said in Buddhism that athletic activities pull you into a natural state of mindfulness. When you engage in sports with your full attention it becomes a form of meditation.

Buddhists who participate in the Zen Way of Shooting Sport generally prefer the pistol / handgun target shooting events and competitions because the barrel lengths are shorter. Therefore there is typically a greater emphasis on body control, for which meditation serves as a great aid for better performances. And so Buddhists who participate in shooting sports generally prefer the pistol events.

After winning the gold medal Kim commented to Reuters "The men are really good but the last time the women won a gold was 20 years ago so before I came to London I wanted to show that the Korean men and women were equally competitive." Buddhist mindfulness training helped Kim make her point as a gold medal winner in the Olympics.

Source:  MandelNews.com

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