Seabees reclaim the captain’s cup on Diego

Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Austin L Simmons | DIEGO GARCIA, British Indian Ocean Territory (March 27, 2015) Utilitiesman 3rd Class Ramiro Detrinidad, assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 5, deployed to Diego Garcia, tries to score a point past Air Traffic Controller 2nd Class Benjamin Witherspoon, the airfield manager at Air Operations aboard U.S. Navy Support Facility Diego Garcia, during Captain's Cup, March 27. Captain's Cup is a monthly competition held in order to emphasize teamwork and boost morale on the island. (U.S. Navy photo By Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Austin L. Simmons/Released)  

DIEGO GARCIA, BRITISH INDIAN OCEAN TERRITORY

03.27.2015

Courtesy Story

Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 5

By Construction Electrician 3rd Class (SCW) Travis Mitchell
Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 5 Public Affairs

DIEGO GARCIA, British Indian Ocean Territory — Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 5 Detail Diego Garcia, along with two Seabees from Diego Garcia Public Works Department, dominated the Navy Support Facility (NSF) Diego Garcia captain’s cup competition, March 27.

The captain’s cup is a friendly competition between commands, and on Diego Garcia the competition is serious.

The events for the competition included a six man relay race, soccer shootout, football throw, beach volleyball tournament and a tug-of-war. The joint Seabee team won the six-man relay race and the volleyball tournament outright. Also competing in the event were an Air Force unit, British Royal Marines, Naval Computer and Telecommunication Station Far East, and the NSF’s security, medical and air operations departments.

Teams try their hardest to best each other and earn the trophy that comes with victory. That’s not all that is awarded to the victorious team though. On top of receiving the trophy, the winning team is also given the responsibility of coming up with the next captain’s cup events on the following month, and instead of competing in the event, the reigning champions are placed in charge of supervising the next competition. The team that won the previous month was the supply department and they judged and facilitated all events on the 27th.

Capt. Jason Jorgensen, NSF’s commanding officer, said, “You [NMCB-5] did a great job, and I’m excited to see many of you becoming involved with other activities on the island, and making Diego Garcia a better place.”

At one point during the volleyball competition the Seabees were down seven points with the opposing team only needed one to win.

Construction Electrician 1st Class Raymundo Sanchez took the serve and scored eight consecutive points. Sanchez said, “Failure wasn’t an option. I had to come through for my team.”

This was the first time the Seabees were able to participate in the event and immediately their fiery spirit and drive to win were apparent to the other commands on the island. Much of the reason the Seabees were able to outperform their competition was their team spirit and motivation from their teammates. The Seabees continually outworked their competitors and it was their effort that brought them the cup.

NMCB 5 Detail Diego Garcia is one of the many details from NMCB 5’s during their Pacific deployment. The Port Hueneme, California, -based battalion is currently operating forward throughout the U.S. Pacific Command (PACOM) supporting U.S. naval and joint forces under the command.

• Date Taken: 03.27.2015
• Date Posted: 04.08.2015 03:15
• Story ID: 159380
• Location: DIEGO GARCIA, IO