Geena Davis Nearly Made the 2000 Olympics After Taking Up Archery at 41

Geena Davis had already won an Oscar and starred in some of Hollywood's most iconic films. But in 1997, at age 41, she found a new obsession - one that would take her further than almost anyone expected.

A Gold Medal on TV Started It All

While watching the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, Davis became transfixed by American archer Justin Huish, who won two gold medals. She had never picked up a bow before, and freely admitted she had not been an athlete growing up. That did not stop her. She hired Huish himself as her first coach and started training almost immediately after the Games ended.

Her commitment went well beyond casual. Davis was soon practicing up to six hours a day, six days a week in a private yard in Los Angeles. Within six months she was entering local tournaments. Within a year she was competing nationally and internationally.

300 Women, One Team

By 1999, Davis had earned a wild-card berth at the Sydney International Golden Arrow competition in Australia - the same city that would host the 2000 Games. That same year, roughly 300 women competed for spots on the U.S. Olympic archery team. Davis made it through to the semifinals, held on August 21, 1999, at Brookdale Park in Bloomfield, New Jersey. Twenty-eight women competed in that round. She finished 24th. Only the top 16 advanced.

Her coach pointed to the weather as a factor: rain was rare for Davis, who trained exclusively in sunny California. "It's tough for us because we never get to practice in the rain," he said. "It caught her a little off guard."

What She Said About It

Davis did not downplay what she had done. "I've been fortunate to discover in my adult life that I have a fair amount of athletic ability," she said. She later described the experience as among the greatest athletic challenges of her life - more demanding, in its way, than any role she had played on screen.

She never stopped shooting. In later interviews she talked about the possibility of trying a different sport for future Olympic consideration. She also took pride in a wider effect: the 2012 films The Hunger Games and Brave sparked a wave of girls taking up archery - a sport Davis helped put in front of millions when she nearly made the team herself.