{"id":141494,"date":"2024-04-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-04-01T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=141494"},"modified":"2024-04-01T19:31:06","modified_gmt":"2024-04-01T19:31:06","slug":"unity-in-action-nco-and-soldier-of-the-rotation-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=141494","title":{"rendered":"Unity in Action: NCO and Soldier of the Rotation Competition"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n Participants pose for a photo during the Best Noncommissioned Officer and Soldier of the Rotation Competition at Mihail Kog\u0103lniceanu Air Base, Rom\u00e2nia March 19-21, 2024. The competition featured participants from the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force, along with members of the the Romanian and French armies. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Ashley Xie)
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Mihail Kog\u0103lniceanu Air Base, Romania \u2014 The Best Soldier and Noncommissioned Officer of the Rotation Competition held at Mihail Kog\u0103lniceanu Air Base in Romania March 19-21, 2024, showcased camaraderie, readiness, and collaboration among allied forces stationed in Romania and Bulgaria. This joint and multinational event featured participation from the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force, along with participants from the Romanian and French armies.<\/p>\n

The competition was a rigorous trial through seven stations: the Army Combat Fitness Test, medical\/radio lanes, combatives, a ruck march, an obstacle course, weapons handling, and a culminating board evaluation.<\/p>\n

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\n Pfc. Jackson Kelly, a joint fire support specialist assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, and Romanian Fruntas Antonio Ruce, a military policeman assigned to 01837 MK Air Base, compete at the combatives station during the NCO and Soldier of the Rotation Competition at Mihail Kog\u0103lniceanu Air Base, Romania, March 19, 2024. This portion of the competition allowed Soldiers to learn combatives skills from a variety of military services and demonstrate their use in a practical setting. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Alexcia Rupert)
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\u201cYou can tell it was very friendly competition,\u201d said Command Sgt. Maj. Ronis Gutierrez, the senior enlisted advisor for MK Air Base garrison. \u201cEveryone was shaking hands, rooting and cheering for each other as they went through. That’s how memories are created.\u201d<\/p>\n

This competition was more than a contest; it demonstrated the critical importance of allied unity and the collective resolve to maintain peace in the strategically pivotal regions of the Baltic and Black Seas.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m glad we are all here; great cohesion and teamwork competitiveness was working with NATO forces,\u201d said U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Felix Vazquez, a tactical air control air party specialist assigned to 1st Expeditionary Air Support Operations Squadron.<\/p>\n

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\n French Caporal Sophie Knobloch puts together a M-249 machine gun to test her proficiency on the weapon during the NCO and Soldier of the Rotation Competition at Mihail Kog\u0103lniceanu Air Base, Romania, March 20, 2024. Competitions like this one build proficiency and mutual understanding of ally and partner force tactics and techniques to improve interoperability on and off the battlefield. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Ashley Xie)
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U.S. Army Sgt. Henry Topps, a military policeman assigned to 216 Military Police Company, and Pfc. Jackson Kelly, a joint fire support specialist assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, placed first in the competition.<\/p>\n

\u201cGoing through these trials and tribulations with our counterparts really helped us become cohesive,\u201d said Topps. \u201cWhen doing the two mile run for the ACFT, the French came from behind us, and we were cheering each other on even while I felt like I was dying. We gave each other fist bumps, and they even passed us.\u201d<\/p>\n

On March 19, the competition began with the ACFT, setting the tone for the challenges ahead. The medical\/radio lanes then tested the participants technical skills, and the combatives station displayed martial prowess, using techniques inspired by Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe competition is about pushing yourself and beating your fellow service members in a friendly competition,\u201d said U.S. Navy Builder 3rd Class Kevin Santana, assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 11. \u201cIt was good to see many different uniforms, and there are some really heavy hitters out here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Day two began with a 10-mile ruck march, followed by an obstacle course. The Romanian team set the fastest time on the obstacle course. Later that day, participants were evaluated on their proficiency with the M-249 machine gun, and by their performance at an evaluation board.<\/p>\n

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\n French Sergeant Loic Marie executes a deadlift for the Army Combat Fitness Test during the NCO and Soldier of the Rotation Competition at Mihail Kog\u0103lniceanu Air Base, Romania, March 19, 2024. The competition promoted collaboration, unity, and mutual trust among participants. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Alexcia Rupert)
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\u201cThe most interesting event was the obstacle course; it was really interesting, but I liked it the most,\u201d said Romanian Fruntas Ruce Antonia, a military policeman with 01837 MK Air Base.<\/p>\n

The competition concluded on March 21 with a ceremony that was not just about awards but about celebrating the shared journey of all participants.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is important for the French to show that we can do the same events and share our experiences,\u201d said French Adjuntant Elvire Bertrand, attached to the French Army.<\/p>\n

The Best Soldier and NCO Competition brought participants together while affirming their shared values, readiness, and unwavering partnership among the allied force participants.<\/p>\n

\u201cDoing this competition brings out a lot of pride in your country; it tests our limits,\u201d said Topps. \u201cIt is all about us coming together and building that camaraderie because we are all under NATO; we are all on the same team.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Participants pose for a photo during the Best Noncommissioned Officer and Soldier of the Rotation Competition at Mihail Kog\u0103lniceanu Air Base, Rom\u00e2nia March 19-21, 2024. The competition featured participants from the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force, along with members of the the Romanian and French armies. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Ashley Xie) (Photo […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":141496,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-141494","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141494","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=141494"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141494\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":141501,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141494\/revisions\/141501"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/141496"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=141494"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=141494"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=141494"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}