Top MPs face off at Fort Leonard Wood

By Randy RoughtonSeptember 17, 2009

Team Rappelling
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Water Pit
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Dummy Drag
3 / 3 Show Caption + Hide Caption – A team of military policemen carry a 200 lb. dummy under obstacles during the Warfighter Challenge at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. The obstacle was part of a Physical Endurance Combat Skills course, just one phase of the 96-hour competition that pitted th... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. - The Army's 13th-annual Warfighter Challenge kicked off Monday at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.

The annual competition is open to soldiers serving in the military police, corrections specialist, and criminal investigation special agent career fields in both the active and Reserve components. Thirty-four teams, which consist of a staff sergeant, sergeant, or corporal team leader, and two specialists or below, are competing in a 96-hour competition that culminates with a 15-mile endurance march.

"The purpose of the Warfighter Challenge is to promote esprit within the Military Police Corps while challenging and showcasing the best our regiment has to offer," said U.S. Army Military Police Regimental Command Sgt. Major Charles Kirkland. "A physically grueling competition such as this brings out the character in our soldiers and makes teamwork essential. We have been looking forward to seeing our soldiers in action during a demanding, yet safe, competition."

The Military Police Corps became a basic branch of the Army with the passage of Public Law 581 on June 28, 1950. The Military Police Corps Regiment was established at Fort McClellan, Ala., in 1986, and moved to Fort Leonard Wood in 1999.