by Joseph P. Tartaro
Kim Rhode competes for her fifth Olympic gold medal. (Photo by USA Shooting)
Executive Editor
Two members of the US Shooting Team competing at the 30th Olympiad in London have harvested gold medals and set historic records.
First, Kim Rhode on July 29 went where no American Olympian has ever gone before by winning a gold medal in women’s skeet, and setting a record while doing so. At 33, the El Monte, CA, shotgun artist now has won a medal in an individual sport in five straight Olympic competitions.
In wind and rain at the Royal Artillery Barracks, she hit 74 of 75 flying targets in her qualifying round, then went 25 straight in the second round, for a total record score of 99. at one point.
Rhode won her first gold medal at 16 in Atlanta in 1996 in double trap. When women’s double trap was dropped from the Olympics, she switched to women’s skeet, which is doubles from thrown from two houses—high and low—at most stations. She got a bronze in Sydney, gold in Athens and silver in Beijing.
According to Sporting News, only four other people have won individual medals in five straight games. They were a Japanese judoka and three German lugers, all of whom are about as well known in America as Rhode.
LONDON — Sgt. Vincent Hancock, U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, fires on a target today at the Royal Artillery Barracks during day one of men’s skeet qualification at the London Olympics. Hancock posted the days high score of 74 and sits on a two-shot lead heading into tomorrow’s final day.
(Photo by Michael Molinaro, USAMU PAO)
Two days later, Sgt. Vincent Hancock, US Army Marksmanship Unit, won a gold medal in men’s skeet, also fired at the Royal Artillery Barracks. It was Hancock’s second consecutive Olympic gold medal.
To win it, Hancock shot a perfect final round score of 25 for a total of 148, and set a new Olympic record. He is the first men’s skeet shooter in Olympic history to win two gold medals.
He also set a new Olympic record along the way with a high qualifying score of 123, breaking the previous high mark of 121 he set in Beijing in 2008.
Other members of the US Shooting Team have not faired as well in the early days of competition; none so far has shot well enough to qualify for a medal. However, Olympic shooting competitions in 25- and 50-meter pistol and 50-meter three-position rifle were scheduled to continue through August 6.
