Vincent Hancock is back home in Benbrook after "such a cool experience” winning gold in Tokyo in skeet shooting.
"Jet lag is still hitting me really hard," Hancock said Friday at Fort Worth Trap and Skeet where he practices.
For Hancock, 32, it was his fourth trip to the Olympics and his third gold medal.
"It's unbelievable I was able to get another gold medal,” Hancock said. “I'm going to appreciate this one for as long as possible."
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Hancock has been shooting since he was a young boy and was the favorite to win.
But it almost didn't happen.
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"I was ahead. I was cruising. I was crushing everybody," he said.
He was perfect -- until the last round.
"I missed two targets in a row, two singles, easy targets,” Hancock said. “And then I'm like OK, I can't miss any more targets. This is ridiculous. I was mad at myself. I was like no."
He barely survived to make it to a shoot-off.
He then bounced back, advanced, and won.
“I let out some pretty good yells and a little fist pump, a little Tiger-esque fist pump, and it felt good,” he remembered. “Felt great. Oh my goodness. It still doesn't feel real that I was able to do it again."
For Hancock, the pandemic made competing in Tokyo a little strange.
"It was unlike anything I've ever experienced before,” he said. “There were hardly any people in the stands when we walked into the opening ceremony."
It wasn't the same.
But it was just as special.
"It's such a cool experience,” Hancock said. “I mean every time you have a chance to have a medal hung around your neck, it's a life experience."
Back home now, Hancock is already eyeing the next summer games in Paris because being the best in the world never gets old.
