Aug. 15, 2005

AMERICANA, Brazil – By winning the gold medal and equaling his own World Records in men’s skeet, 16-year-old Vincent Hancock (Eatonton, Ga.) finished his first ISSF World Cup season just as strong as he started it.

Hancock finished with a score of 149, Sunday, at the last World Cup of the 2005 season, winning the gold medal by one point and equaling the current World Record, which he set just four months ago at his first World Cup in Korea.

George Achilleos, of Cyprus, had to battle it out with Andrea Benelli, of Italy, for the silver medal. Both finished with a total score of 148; but in the end, Achilleos won the shoot-off, hitting eight-straight, compared to Benelli’s seven.

Other U.S. finishers include 2004 Olympian Sgt. First Class Shawn Dulohery with a 119, and four-time Olympian Sgt. First Class Todd Graves with a 118. Both competitors are with the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit at Fort Benning.

The next competition on the agenda for the U.S. Shotgun Team is the Fall Selection Match held in Colorado Springs, Colo., in October, and the Championship of the Americas in Salinas, Puerto Rico, in November.

USA Shooting is recognized by the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) and the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) as the national governing body for the Olympic and international shooting sports in the United States. USA Shooting trains and selects the USA Shooting Team, which represents the United States throughout the year in numerous major international competitions worldwide including the Olympic Games, World Championships, Pan American Games, Championships of the Americas and at ISSF World Cups. For more information on the USA Shooting Team, please log on to www.usashooting.org. For full results from the ISSF World Cup Americana, please log on to www.issf-shooting.org.