Carson to compete in Warrior Games

By Dustin Senger (Fort Carson)May 12, 2011

FORT CARSON, Colo. -- Three Soldiers from Fort Carson's Warrior Transition Battalion are listed with more than 200 other disabled and injured servicemembers preparing for the 2011 Warrior Games May 16-21 in Colorado Springs.

Sgt. Christopher Helton, Sgt. Gavin Sibayan and Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Livesay registered for the 2011 Warrior Games with the Western Regional Medical Command. The U.S. Olympic Committee, headquartered in Colorado Springs, in cooperation with the Department of Defense, is coordinating the competitions for the second consecutive year. A schedule of events is available at http://usaparalympics.org, click on "Warrior Games."

The games are open to servicemembers recovering from limb amputation or dysfunction, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder.

The events include track and field, shooting relays, wheelchair basketball, sitting volleyball, swimming, archery and cycling.

Fort Carson Soldiers earned 12 of the Army's 68 medals in 2010. They took home five golds, four silvers and three bronzes. Helton is scheduled for the 100-meter dash, standing shot put and discus throw. Sibayan will swim the 50-meter backstroke and 50- and 100-meter freestyle events.

The Army represented 90 of the 220 competitor slots at registration, according to the USOC. The Marine Corps received 50; the Air Force, 35; and the combined Coast Guard and Navy team, 25. Fort Carson's Livesay joined a new 20-person special operations team, which led to his selection for the ultimate champion category.

USOC officials permitted a proportionate allotment for the ultimate champion category: five entrants for the Army, three for the Marine Corps, and two each for the Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard and special operations teams. The events include cycling, swimming, shooting, sprinting and shot-putting.

"When we focus on ability, rather than disability, we see that physical fitness and sports can have a healing effect on the mind and on the body and on the soul," said Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in a press release announcing the events in September.

"The athletes that compete in the Warrior Games demonstrate that regardless of circumstance, physical fitness and a passion to win remain at the core of our military culture," said Mullen.

"And while these values are certainly important on the battlefield, they're certainly important in the recovery process of our wounded, ill and injured troops."

Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta will ignite the 2011 Warrior Games torch at the Olympic Training Center during an evening opening ceremony May 16. In November, Giunta became the first living recipient of the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War, three years after rescuing wounded Soldiers during an ambush in Afghanistan.

"It's truly an honor for me to kickoff such an amazing competition with so many amazing people," said Giunta in a USOC press release announcing the torchbearer May 5.

"All of the competitors have faced adversity in some shape or form, and the fact that they have overcome it to not only compete at this event, but live full, quality lives is awesome."