Zhang Cuiping has never met dual world record holder Sonja Pfeilschifter, but she shares a lot in common with the German markswoman.

Both shooters have short hair and specialize in 10-meter air rifle and 50-meter rifle three positions.

And above all, they both had the experience of being tailoress.

Born in a village of Handan, north China's Hebei Province, Zhang has been disabled after contracting polio when she was three years old.

"My biggest trouble is that I couldn't walk like the able-bodied people," Zhang said.

Every day, her parents carried her to school, and after class she waited to be picked up.

Zhang could never forget the bitterness of being teased and laughed at by her schoolmates.

"I couldn't do anything but weep," she murmured.

It was until when her mother reported her suffering to the teacher that situation began turning better. The teacher told the children that they were equal and asked them to help Zhang in study and daily life.

When class was over, teachers would always have Zhang to leave first, for fear other kids would jostle her.

However, Zhang decided to quit after junior high school.

"My parents were getting on in years, and I couldn't stand having them worry about me any more."

After staying at home for some time, Zhang was attracted by clothes-making.

"My intention at that time was simple: I could make a lot of beautiful clothes for myself," she said.

Although she just learned in a clothing store for more than a year, the clever girl has already been able to make clothes on her own.

"Whenever I see people wearing clothes that I made, which looked pretty and fit, I felt proud," she said.

Zhang started shooting at the end of 2003, when his uncle told her the news that the provincial shooting squad of the disabled were recruiting new members.

The then 22-year-old believed it was a new stage where she could tap her potential, and she decided to give it a try.

Out of her expectation, she was accepted, and three years later, the national squad opened the door for her.

Before the Beijing Paralympics, Zhang had pocketed seven gold, nine silver and six bronze in all competitions.

"I like shooting, especially when I score as well as the able-bodied," she said.

This time, she won a bronze in women's 50-meter sport rifle three positions on Tuesday with 668.6 points, and a silver in the mixed 10-meter air rifle prone with 704.4 on Thursday. In the second event, she was the only women shooter to mount the medal podium and her score was just half a point off the champion, British Matt Skelhon.

Zhang Cuiping (L) won a silver in the mixed 10-meter air rifle prone with 704.4 on Thursday. [Xinhua]

"I was a little bit nervous," she said after the close contest, in which her ranking changed several times, including a fourth.

While under enormous pressure, Zhang told herself to calm down. A 10.8 ninth shot following a 10.9 secured her runner-up position.

Zhang said she fears nothing but a snow-covered path to the shooting range.

"On a snowy day, we use crutches and help each other on our way to training. We slip sometimes. Able-bodied people will help us up. But that hurts my heart. 'Why can't I walk like them?' I would ask myself," said Zhang.

This time, the two medals obviously raised her confidence.

"The medals are not my ultimate goal," she said. "The most important thing is that I am on the Paralympic arena after all. It is shooting that changed my life and broadened my world. It also provided me with a platform to go for dreams."

Zhang said she planned to go back to school.

"I want to learn English," she said. "If I can speak English, I can make a lot of friends in the shooting ranges."

(Xinhua News Agecny September 12, 2008)