Charlotte Kerwood is expecting more cheers than boos when she competes at the London Olympics.

The 25-year-old clay pigeon shooter from Fletching will be aiming for gold in the Olympic trap on August 4 - the last event in the shooting.

And she will have plenty of family, friends and supporters urging her on at the Royal Artillery Barracks, Woolwich in stark contrast to her first Olympics four years ago in Beijing.

Kerwood, whose mother and father run the clay pigeon shooting ground at Northall Farm, near Uckfield, insists that being a home Games will not add extra pressure either.

She said: “I am looking forward to it more because it is at home.

“In Beijing I got booed by the Chinese.”

Booing is not part of the etiquette in shooting but Kerwood explained: “It was on my second round and I was up against the Chinese girl.

“I didn't shoot very well at Beijing but I was shooting really well against her and every time I hit a target the crowd booed and when she hit one they cheered.

“I found it quite funny to be honest.”

Her mother Jan, who was in the crowd, was not so amused.

Jan said: “I started doing the same so when the Chinese girl missed I cheered and booed when she hit it but it didn't make a bit of difference as there were so many of them.”

Kerwood has no trouble coping with pressure, her three Commonwealth Gold medals prove that, but she admits that it has been an anxious period qualifying for the Games and then having to wait while British rival Abbey Burton lodged an appeal after missing out.

Kerwood said: “It has been nerve-wracking but last year was worse than this year.

“This year I knew exactly what I had to do to qualify and it was all down to events in London and America whereas last year it was a bit vague.

“I knew I had to perform well and I perform better when I know what I have to do.

“After London, although there are always doubts, I thought I had done enough as I came seventh and was one shot off the final. I did better than the other two girls (Burton and Shona Marshall) who were there.”

Unfortunately for Kerwood, when the team was announced at the end of May, her name was not in it because Burton's appeal was still ongoing.

Kerwood said: “I don't know if the other girl appealed before Beijing but I didn't have to go through all of this the last time.

“Part of me was surprised but part of me expected it. I did not expect it to go on as long as it did though.

“I was confident I would still be going but there was also that element of doubt until the day it was officially announced. After that I was able to concentrate on my shooting.”

Kerwood enjoys being part of the team and expects the experience to be as good as Beijing.

She said: “All the people who are competing I get on really well with.

“In China it was only a team of five and we would all stay and watch each other and be supportive.

“There was a brilliant atmosphere so I am sure it will be even better this time as there are 11 of us.”

You can hear the excitement in Kerwood's voice when she talks about the Games being on home turf.

“I think they will be brilliant,” she said. “I went to the Commonwealth Games in Manchester and everybody came to watch me shoot then. It is really nice to have people there supporting you and some of my best friends have been lucky enough to get tickets as well as my family and people from the shooting club.”

Kerwood, who is sponsored by shooting, equestrian and sailing clothing specialists Musto, was buzzing about the prospect of collecting her Team GB kit when The Argus spoke to her.

She said: “I loved it the last time as I had my friend with me and we got all our stuff and tried everything on.

“We ended up with two suitcases full of gear - it was great.”

Kerwood and her team-mates, as well as the other competing nations, have been practising at the Woolwich venue since July 16.

But many of the world's top shooters experienced the venue during the World Cup meeting at the end of April.

Kerwood said: “The layouts are beautiful and it has really good visibility.

“It was great to shoot on it and have a bit of training on it beforehand. Everything went really well.

“It is the background that is important for the shooters as it is never the same where ever you go.

“At Woolwich it is just big green netting which is really good. Some places are on a hill so there is a drop, or there are trees. I shot in Cairo over the sand which is very different.

“From one place to the next it depends on the background but the netting at London is brilliant.”

Kerwood also feels she is shooting well going into the Games after an intensive 12 months of training and competition.

She said: “This year I felt I needed to get my butt into gear and start shooting better.

“I took myself out to Australia for two months from November to January, then went out to Qatar, Italy, the States and Italy again.

“I am very lucky as I love going away, as well as coming home, and I have got some great friends in other countries.

“I have not been shooting too badly. At London (World Cup) I missed out on the final by one target and also at the European Championships I missed out again by one.

“I want to be steady going into the Games and not peak too soon.

“I want to shoot well and go for it in London.”

Apart from her coaches, Kerwood also uses a psychologist to help her preparations and admits that the mental side of the sport is as important as the physical.

She revealed: “My psychologist puts things into perspective.

“We work on 'if' situations such as 'if this happens how am I going to cope with it?' Every situation is prepared for.

“With shooting 80% of it is in your head once you get your technique right.

“When I first started I was more natural rather than with a technique. I just went out and did it but since 2010-11 I have been really working on my technique to get it as solid as possible.

“I would say it is pretty much perfect and I am doing everything right.”

Perfect technique or not, Kerwood is not going to make any bold predictions for London.

Kerwood, who first started shooting as a 12 year old, knows the competition will be extremely tough.

She said: “I want to make the final (the top six). Once you get in that, anything can happen.”

Italian Jessica Rossi and Spaniard Fatima Galvez are going into the Games in good form but Kerwood says the field is wide open.

“Because only one woman from each country qualifies there are a lot of good shooters. And because it is the Olympics anyone could win it on the day,” she said.

Although a medal hope, Kerwood failed to come through qualifying at the last Olympics in China but believes that the experience of those Games will stand her in good stead.

She said: “I was okay in Beijing until the opening ceremony and then it was, 'Oh my God I'm at the Olympics.

“Someone once said to me that there is nothing like the Olympics and it is so true.

“You just need to go and experience it then you know what to expect.

“I feel I know what to expect now. I am older and I know myself a bit better now. On the morning of the competition I'll just be excited and be saying let's go for it.”

Schedule

Olympic trap

4 August - 09:00: Trap Qualification.

4 August - 15:00: Trap Finals

Venue: Royal Artillery Barracks.

FACTFILE:

• Date of Birth: 15/09/86
• Born: Cuckfield Height (cm): 172.00
• Club: Northall CPC
• Coaches: Kevin Gill and Marcello Dradi.
• Honours: Won gold at the age of 15 in the individual double trap at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester. She followed this success with a gold at the European Championships in the same year and a further two Commonwealth gold medals in the women's double trap singles and double trap pairs at the 2006 Games in Melbourne