Soldiers train with water polo team

By U.S. Army Physical Fitness SchoolApril 2, 2015

Soldiers train with water polo team
1 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Soldiers train with water polo team
2 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – A Soldier with the 1st Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment instructs members of the U.S. national men's water polo team on how to use a compass for land navigation. Soldiers with the U.S. Army Physical Fitness School participated in the one-day trainin... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT JACKSON, S.C. (April 2, 2015) -- Soldiers with the U.S. Army Physical Fitness School traveled to Fort Carson, Colorado to team up with the 1st Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment March 21. Soldiers from both units conducted team building exercises with the men's national water polo team.

Lt. Col. Michael Avey, the 1-12th commander, welcomed the team, coached by John Kocur, to Fort Carson to train with the Red Warriors. The water polo team's 19 members have competed in up to four Olympics. The team has also trained with the Navy Seals in southern California a few years ago.

Kocur said he appreciated the opportunity to train with the Army so his team can see and feel how Soldiers represent the U.S.

The athletes were trained in basic land navigation techniques. They also completed an individual walking and running pace count. Capt. Amy Tang and 1st Lt. Amanda Young, Army master fitness trainers with the school, conducted physical readiness training and military movement drills with the team.

The water polo athletes said that they conduct very similar exercises for their dry-land training in the gym. Kocur said he was most impressed with the level of discipline that is expected from Soldiers during PT -- something he said he wanted his team to experience.

Throughout the event, the team rotated between participating in a physical challenge and a team building exercise. Physical challenges included incorporating uneven terrain with log carries; water jug carries; litter carries; a Humvee push; and running. Mental challenges included solving problems; working through obstacles without verbal communication; concentrating on balance; and solving pictograms.

At the end of the day, everyone participating gained new experience from the combined training, Tang said.

The water polo team was able to experience a kind of training that required team members to work together and to learn each other's strengths and weaknesses out of the pool. The athletes were able to test their physical skills in obstacle courses as well as learn operational skills. They were training as tactical athletes and not just as water polo athletes.

Soldiers with the U.S. Army Physical Fitness School were invited to the Olympic Training Center to observe how elite athletes train in the weight room and what programs were used. Much of their program parallels the Army's physical readiness training.

Soldiers with the 1-12th learned to instruct those without a military background to work at a high operational tempo as a team while staying safe.

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