British Shooting star Seonaid McIntosh: '...as a child I was adamant I was never going to shoot'

Just who is that in the poster on her wall?

"Who?" McIntosh replies as she turns away from my laptop screen and glances over her left shoulder. "That's Captain Marvel. My sister got me that for my birthday."

Unsurprisingly, it's not the first time Jennifer or their parents have come up in the conversation – shooting runs in their blood.

Her sister's achievements speak for themselves, but when you add mum Shirley's own Commonwealth Games haul and the fact dad Donald coached them all to success, you can't help but feel the youngest of the clan was destined for the same.

But Seonaid McIntosh isn't just good with a rifle; she's the best.

In 2019, the Alloa & District member became Britain's most successful female rifle shooter of all-time, winning three World Cup medals, ranking number one in the world for the 50m Rifle Three Position event and set an equal world record with a score in the 300m Rifle Prone event.

She also has two bronze Commonwealth Games medals of her own. Not bad for someone who spent years avoiding the sport altogether because it was her "sister's thing".

"I think I was shooting before I was born, but I didn't want to shoot as a child," she tells Advertiser Sport. "I remember going to the Olympics in London and going to see her [Jennifer] and it being a really big thing. The way she spoke about it made it seem so interesting and that's when I decided I wanted to shoot.

"In my eyes as a child, when we went to shooting competitions with my mum and dad they were celebrities. When my sister got into the sport it was the same."

When McIntosh finally decided to accept her family calling and get serious about shooting, it wasn't long before she enjoyed success.

She joined the Dollar Academy team, winning the NRA's Ashburton Shield in 2013 and her own individual plaudits that year, and began to work more closely with her dad.

Donald, 53, continues to coach her to this day and, as much as he "jokes about being the only one in the family without any medals", Seonaid believes he has been as much a part of her success as anyone.

"We get on really, really well and he's like my best friend," she says about the family dynamic.

"You can always trust your coach and it's a different kind of trust when it's your dad. When I am upset or need a hug, I can go and get that from him. He's always there with me.

"We have so many things in common that aren't shooting and we can chat about a lot of things which aren't work-related, which is really nice."

Not only was shooting far from her mind, McIntosh says her heart was actually set on pursuing a career as a professional in a pipe band.

A drummer with her school, she was also part of the team who became world champions under the guidance of Craig Stewart – incidentally, also her school shooting coach "who has a lot to answer for" – and Scott Curry.

But, McIntosh laughs when asked how many people can claim to be world champion in two things just so different.

"I didn't even dream about becoming world number one until after I had gone to the London Olympics," she says. "It's not something I ever thought would happen especially because as a child I was adamant I was never going to shoot.

"It's kind of crazy and only every now and again I will see stuff on TV and they will talk about folk like Andy Murray and you are just like: 'Oh, I'm the best at what I do! That's so cool'.

"It's the weirdest thing and I never thought I would be that person."

"I deal better as an individual rather than being in a team," she replies when I ask her how she finds excelling at an individual sport like Murray. "I always feel in a team I am about to let someone down. If it's just me, it doesn't matter if you let yourself down.

"It sounds really negative, but it doesn't feel like that. I just think I would struggle more in a team because of that added pressure of there being other people you are trying to do well for.

"You can be disappointed for yourself but it is different being disappointed for seven other people."

It's a shame, then, McIntosh's own Olympic ambitions have been put on hold by the cancellation of Tokyo 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The decision wasn't a major shock to the 24-year-old but she doesn't deny it is still disappointing to wait for her first experience of the world's showpiece.

"A lot of us knew it was coming," she recalls. "A lot of our competitions had already been cancelled and we still had to fit in qualifying. There were so many 'what-ifs' – we knew it wouldn't be feasible to run the Olympics this year.

"I knew it was coming which means it wasn't quite such a big blow or shock as it could have been. It's disappointing and I have worked really hard to get to it.

"It's kinda weird as I have been qualified for nearly two years now and now need to wait another one.

"There are so many things up in the air and we don't know when lockdown is going to end or when the borders are going to open. It's really hard to plan for competitions you don't know where or when they will be.

"You are just really trying not to forget how to shoot, although it's a bit like riding a bike."

By and large, McIntosh's training regime for the games is also on hold and other than a laser trainer called SCATT she is having to find new ways to keep herself fit.

"I have my air rifle here but it is empty and I couldn't fire it even if I wanted to," she explains. "It means I can't train even if I wanted to, which is a bit pants. But, there's a lot going on right now for so many people.

"It's been a good opportunity to work on my fitness and I have been working on my running and doing some cycling.

"Then I have just been reading books and watching movies. I read a lot of fantasy books and I am really into that. My sister is an author, not a published one yet but she will be. She has got me really into that and I have been working my way through books, but my reading list is enormous.

"I am one of the high-risk people so I have to stay here."

Outside of her sport, the cancellation has delayed plans to head to Strathclyde University, in Glasgow, to do a master's in electrical engineering as there is nowhere for her to train in the city.

Instead, she hopes to go to Edinburgh, but is still waiting to hear back. It might seem like a lot to handle, but she isn't "ready to stop learning" and admits a career in academia would be "really cool".

Seonaid's career has been inspired by sister Jennifer (pictured)

As for shooting and what the future holds, she has a very clear idea of what she hopes to achieve before it is finally time to call it quits.

"I'd love an Olympic medal," she says without hesitating. "I am so happy with everything I have done already and even if I had to stop now I would still be really happy with my career. But, I feel like that would be a nice little cherry to add onto the top of a cool collection."

She might not be able to fly, but, as she signs off and the screen goes black, it's clear McIntosh is Clackmannanshire's very own marvel.