Shoe-thrower took shoe throwing lessons in U.S.

The journalist who threw his shoes at President Bush over the weekend reportedly received shoe-throwing training in the United States.

Muntader al-Zaidi, an Iraqi journalist, began planning "Operation: Shoe Lace" in 2006. It was then that al-Zaidi traveled to the U.S. where shoe-throwing is standard curriculum at numerous circus training schools.

"If you want to learn to throw shoes you go to the U.S. It's that simple," said Canadian Chris Danielson, 2007 Shoe-thrower runner up at the Las Vegas Invitational.

The journalist, who obtained a six month circus visa, funded his own travels to the states where he attended schools in Texas, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Jersey and told teachers and fellow students he was planning to start a circus school for children in Iraq.

"I thought it was strange that he only wanted to learn how to throw the shoes, but never wanted to learn how to retrieve the shoes," said Dave Miller, instructor and owner of Circus Acts, Inc, the school which al-Zaidi attended in the Texas panhandle.

Miller went on to say that al-Zaidi graduated tops in his class at Circus Acts, Inc. and was shocked that he missed his intended target, President Bush, last Sunday.

"He excelled with sneakers and hiking boots while in training. So I was surprised that he elected to throw dress shoes. He was only an average dress shoe-thrower, but was deadly accurate with high tops," explained Miller.