USA Becomes Top-Ranked Country in Shooting Sports With 18 Medals at Pan American Games 2023

The US has earned medals and praises across various sports at the Pan American games. But, shooting takes one of the largest slices of the cake as American shooters bagged 18 medals in the sport. The marksmanship of the shooting team yielded yet another successful season of the Pan American Games.

The USA Shooting team witnessed its established players like Vincent Hancock and Sagen Maddalena lead the charge for the Americans. A recently uploaded social media post revealed the fantastic news of the 2023 Pan American Games conquest in Santiago. In fact, it also revealed that the US claimed the highest number of medals in the tournament.

USA tops the tournament with a staggeringly wide gap

The US shooting team showed excellent aim and composure as it constantly nailed the targets to outscore everyone. While the US stood on top with 18 medals, the runner-up nation Mexico could manage to win just eight. USA Shooting posted a tweet to congratulate the American team via its official X handle. The tweet carried the caption, “18 medals. 3 Olympic quotas. That’s a wrap for the 2023 Pan American Games! Great job to all of our amazing athletes!” Out of the 18 medals, the US shooting team had secured five golds, five silvers, and eight bronze medals.

America’s three-time Olympic gold medalist Vincent Hancock bagged a gold medal in Men’s Skeet. This took his Pan-American gold medal tally to three as well. Hancock was also one of the flag bearers who represented the US during the opening ceremony of the Santiago event. Interestingly, this was the first time a shooting athlete carried the stars and the stripes in the Pan Am opening ceremony.

Taking shooting to new heights and preparing for Paris

Speaking about being one of the flag bearers, Hancock said, “To carry that flag meant more to me than anything else I have ever done.” The 7x World Champion further said, “Representing the country is far different than representing yourself.” Another US Olympian and back-to-back world champion Sagen Maddalena also bagged a gold medal for America. 

ALSO READ – 60-Year-Old Shooter Returns to the Olympics After 40 Years, Defying Time to Secure a Spot for Paris Olympics 2024

Maddalena is a Sergeant in the US Army and is a proud member of the US Army Marksman Unit (USAMU). The 30-year-old secured the gold medal in the 10m air rifle category. She also created a new Pan-American record by posting a total of 249.5 in the final round. With these brilliant performances and three Olympic quotas, the US looks forward to the upcoming Olympics in Paris. Will the US be able to repeat its performance in Santiago at Paris?

WATCH STORY – Veteran Cyclist, 62, Triumphs Over Near-Fatal Encounter