Hancock, who claimed men's skeet gold at the Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Olympics, hit every target in the gold-medal match, and the Americans' winning score was 36 from a possible 40.

A perfect final group of targets helped them defeat hosts Italy 36-34.

Chiara Cainero and Tammaro Cassandro - who had won men's and women's team titles a day earlier - had to settle for the silver medal.

With a total of 146 after three qualifying rounds, Hancock and English topped the standings along with Cainero and Cassandro.

Americans Phillip Jungman and Austen Smith qualified for the bronze-medal match along with France's Eric Delaunay and Lucie Anastassiou.

Smith, who claimed individual gold on Monday (May 10), missed just one target in the third-place playoff to help the US to a 36-33 victory and the final spot on the podium.

Russia's Sergey Demin and Zilia Batyrshina were fifth in qualification - marginally missing the medal matches, as did Alexandr Yechshenko and Olga Panarina of Kazakhstan in sixth.

Trap competition is due to begin tomorrow at the ISSF Shotgun World Cup at Trap Concaverde.