Competitors from the U.S. Army, sister services, and partner nations gathered at Fort Moore to showcase their lethality and expertise in a series of combat-readiness events spanning four separate competitions hosted by the Maneuver Center of Excellence, April 5-15, 2024.
“All these events ensure our Soldiers are fit, inspired, disciplined, trained, and ready for the rigor of combat,” said Brig. Gen. Monte L. Rone, U.S. Army Infantry School Commandant and Chief of the Infantry.
Best of the Best competitions like those in Infantry Week provide an opportunity for Soldiers across the force to compete against one another and demonstrate their skills and expertise within their career field. Training and competition alongside our partner nations helps our Soldiers maintain constant readiness and partnerships in an evolving multi-domain battlefield.
The 2024 International Best Mortar Competition, April 7-11
The 2024 International Best Mortar Competition welcomed 26 four-person teams. The mortar teams demonstrated their physical toughness with a physical training test, obstacle course, marksmanship proficiency, and what they do best – assemble and fire mortar systems, engaging targets down range with precision indirect fires.
“Over the last 96 hours, we learned more about what it means to be a mortar Soldier, had fun, and shared tactics, techniques, and procedures,” said Col. Jimmy L. Hathaway, 198th Infantry Brigade commander. “The technical portion challenged some and showed us where we have weaknesses and where we need to look for the future.”
The 2024 International Best Mortar Team came from Fort Moore’s 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, for the second year in a row.
The 2024 International Sniper Competition, April 5-11
Over the course of five days, 36 two-person sniper teams from 12 countries engaged in multiple events that tested their physical and mental limits to increase lethality on the battlefield. In addition, competitors built relationships and exchanged best practices within the sniper community.
While precision, speed, and accuracy are foundational skills used by snipers, communication proved to be vital in the success of this years’ competitors.
“The teams that were very successful in the competition this year were able to communicate with each other clearly and decisively, painting that picture to see what was happening,” said Sgt. 1st Class Jared Adams, C Company, 1st Battalion, 29th Infantry Regiment, 316th Cavalry Brigade, Sniper Course Branch Chief, Fort Moore, Ga.
The final event of the competition, Sniper Showdown, was a bracket-style event where teams competed head-to-head over the course of four rounds. Sgt. Max Miller assigned to 1st Battalion, 157th Infantry Regiment, Colorado National Guard, and Staff Sgt. Johnathon Hjelle, assigned to the Warrior Training Center at Fort Moore as a Ranger Training Assessment Course instructor, represented the Army National Guard and were named ‘Top Shot’ at the Sniper Showdown and placed second overall.
Competing in his fourth International Sniper Competition, Miller shared “it’s a good feeling to end on a high note.”
The 2024 International Sniper Competition named Staff Sgt. Brian Sheffield and Staff Sgt. Matthew Howard, both assigned to 3rd Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Fort Moore, as the overall winners.
Lacerda Cup 4th ID, April 12-14
The 2024 Lacerda Cup All-Army Combatives Championship, named in honor of Staff Sgt. Pedro Brandao Lacerda,75th Ranger Regiment, a former champion who was influential in the development of the Army combatives program, provided an opportunity for Soldiers across the Army to demonstrate confidence, resiliency, and responsiveness to close quarters threats. The Lacerda Cup awards individuals and teams who best display their mastery of combatives skills and their spirit to finish the fight.
Portions of the Lacerda Cup All-Army Combatives Championship took place in Columbus, Ga., with the individual final bouts, fought MMA-style, taking place in the Columbus Ice Rink. Competitors faced each other in the octagon to determine first through fourth places in eight weight classes.
The individual winners were: Bantamweight champion Staff Sgt. Richard House assigned to 1st Brigade, 11th Airborne Division at Joint Base Elemendorf-Richardson, Anchorage, Alaska; Flyweight champion Sgt. Patrick Terry assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson, Co.; Lightweight champion Spc. Brian Yamada assigned to 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th ID; Welterweight champion 1st Lt. Lane Peters assigned to 3rd Battalion, 29th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th ID.; Middleweight champion Spc. Antonio Khanthasa assigned to 3rd Battalion, 75th RR at Fort Moore; Cruiserweight champion Sgt. Jeremiah Slagle assigned to the Ohio National Guard; Light-Heavyweight champion Capt. Tyler McLees assigned to 1st Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 1st SBCT, 4th ID.; and Heavyweight champion Sgt. Jackson Fuamatu assigned to the 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks, Wahiawa, Hawaii.
The 2024 Lacerda Cup All-Army Combatives Championship winning team was the 4th ID. The team members were Spc. Wyatt Bassett, Sgt. Patrick Bryant, Staff Sgt. Mitchell Crites, Staff Sgt. Zachary Durkin, Spc. Valention Gamboa, Spc. Logan Kubitz, Staff Sgt. Efrain Luna, Capt. McLees, Sgt. Alexis Neves, 1st Lt. Peters, Sgt. Joshua Ray, Sgt. 1st Class Brian Siwek, Staff Sgt. Nick Vane, Spc. Amaya Tinoco, Terry, and Yamada.
The 2024 Lt. Gen. David E. Grange Jr. Best Ranger Competition, April 12-14
Infantry Week closed out with the 40th annual Lt. Gen. David E. Grange Jr. Best Ranger Competition. Fifty-six Ranger-qualified buddy teams started the three-day event early Friday morning, April 12, but only 16 teams crossed the finish line Sunday afternoon. The 16 buddy teams faced 60 hours and more than 90 miles of physical and strenuous challenges, as they demonstrated the strength, skill, and sheer determination of a U.S. Army Ranger.
Day two of BRC took place at A.J. McClung Stadium in Columbus with events designed to mirror historical challenges Rangers have encountered such as Pointe du Hoc on Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, 80 years ago prior to D-Day.
“We partner with the Columbus community to show them a great installation is next door. This is a tremendous opportunity to get inspired to want to serve, because these are some of the best of the best,” said Maj. Gen. Curtis A. Buzzard, MCoE and Fort Moore commanding general.
Following the events at the stadium, competitors ran along the Riverwalk, zip-lined across the Chattahoochee River and kayaked to the National Civil War Naval Museum before traveling by helicopter back to post for their last night of events.
“Events like this don’t happen overnight. It takes a lot of resources and planning,” said Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, Gen. James J. Mingus, the guest speaker at the Best Ranger Competition award ceremony April 15. “Special thanks go to ARTB, Fort Moore, and the greater Columbus area for putting on this world-class event.”
“This competition is something very few people can endure,” Mingus continued. “The Best Ranger Competition places extreme physical and mental demands on each team. Sixty hours and 90 miles of pure hardship designed to push the limits of human endurance. The mental and tactical demands are even more rigorous, and you’re expected to make critical decision under the most grueling circumstances when every inch of your body is urging you to quit.”
Both first-time competitors, 1st Lt. Andrew Winski, 2nd Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., and Sgt. Matthew Dunphy, 1st Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Hunter Army Airfield, Ga., proved to be the best of the best.
“It means a lot to me, mostly for my partner, I didn’t want to let him or the regiment down, I’m truly grateful the regiment gave us this opportunity to come down, train and compete, and show what the Army’s Ranger Regiment is and what kind of Rangers we produce,” said Winski. “
“In the Ranger Regiment we hold ourselves to extremely high standards. You don’t want to let all those people that hold you to that standard down,” added Dunphy.
When asked if there was any part of the competition that was particularly difficult, Winski responded, “just another day in the office.”
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