Zhang Shan, the first and only female shooter to win the mixed sex event in Olympic history, is eager to give it another shot at next year's Beijing Olympic Games.

The 39-year-old veteran is fighting for a place in China's 2008 team and an opportunity to take part in her third Olympics.

"Nothing can compare to taking part in the Olympic Games on home soil," Zhang said.

"Although I have been in the Olympics, the feeling in Beijing will be very different.

"I never give up my training and just wait for that moment. That will be a once in a lifetime opportunity."

Zhang entered the world of sport through basketball, when she was selected to train in a special program for promising young athletes in 1976. In 1984, she began skeet shooting for the local Sichuan team and in 1989 she joined the national team.

It was her Olympic experience at the 1992 Barcelona Games that turned her into a real legend. The then 24-year-old made history at the 1992 Games by winning the gold medal in the skeet competition, which included both men and women.

The International Shooting Union then barred women from shooting against men after the Barcelona Games, shutting down any possibility for other female shooters to follow in Zhang's footsteps.

She also set an Olympic record in the event - hitting a perfect 200 out of 200 targets - en route to beating the field of 40 men and five women for the victory.

The talented shooter from Sichuan Province had to retire after her event was removed from the Olympic agenda.

After a study break at Sichuan University, she came out of retirement in February 1998 when a separate women's skeet event was added to the program for the Sydney Games in 2000.

Within a few months, she had reestablished her dominance and won a gold medal at the 1998 World Cup final, which granted her a ticket to Sydney.

There, she momentarily lost some of her edge and placed eighth.

Zhang retired again, but found herself back in the spotlight five years later when she emerged as the national champion by winning the all-important National Games.

So when she decided to come back again for the 2008 Games, nobody dared underestimate her ability.

But Zhang said she was just doing it for fun.

"I was never going for success at the Sydney Games, National Games or Beijing Games. I have already been hugely successful, something most other people never get to experience. So I don't need to prove that again.

"I am just looking for a simple life - by doing what I want, and what I am good at."