Team USA’s Vincent Hancock Takes 4th Olympic Gold Medal

Hancock Hit The Mark On Gold

Vincent Hancock’s Olympic journey is indeed remarkable and inspiring. Overcoming the pressure of expectations, dealing with setbacks, and then making a triumphant comeback to claim his third gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics demonstrates resilience and determination. His story exemplifies the highs and lows of an athlete’s career, highlighting not just physical prowess but also mental fortitude. Winning his fourth gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics only cements his legacy as one of the greats in his sport.

Hancock stands out from other Olympians in that he is the seventh Olympian to win four medals in the same event in four different Olympics. The other six are Al Oerter, Paul Elvstrom, Carl Lewis, Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky, and Mijain Lopez.

“Knowing that I’ve been able to do what I’ve done in this sport and be able to get four and be able to just have my name in the same echelon as theirs, that’s special to me,” Hancock said.

The win came on the 60th clay of the finals, just seconds after his fellow American (and one of his students) Connor Prince missed the 57th clay, to give Hancock a chance to shoot a perfect cycle of 2-2 to come home with gold.

Hancock also picked up a silver medal in Mixed Skeet with another student, bronze-medal winner Austen Smith.

When asked if Hancock was ready for more Olympic glory, he remarked, “I don’t want to think about it right now. LA is there, and then that’s it for me,” Hancock said of future Olympics. I’ll go through LA, I was actually intending to probably retire after this one.” he said, “But when we found out that it was going to be in LA, I said to myself, I’m like, Okay, I’m going to have to take some time off after this. And I fully intend to, but I would like to go back and compete in an Olympics on US soil because what better place to retire than on home ground and, hopefully, can defend again.”

Paris 2024: Where Team USA Shooting Stands

Sagen Maddalena – Silver, Women’s 50m Rifle 3 Positions
Vincent Hancock – Gold, Men’s Skeet
Connor Prince – Silver, Men’s Skeet
Austen Smith – Bronze, Women’s Skeet
Vincent Hancock & Austen Smith – Silver, Skeet Mixed Team