Collaboration through Competition: Special operations military and paramilitary forces come together

ANCON, PERU

05.12.2016

Story by Staff Sgt. Chad Menegay 

Special Operations Command South

Colombia, for the eighth time in 13 years, mightily raised the Fuerzas Comando cup. Honduras placed second, and Peru placed third. The U.S. team, comprised of members assigned to the 7th Special Forces Group, placed fifth.

The Special Operations Command South (SOCSOUTH)-executed Fuerzas Comando "is a skills competition like no other," said U.S. Navy Adm. Kurt W. Tidd, commander, USSOUTHCOM. Through competition, Tidd said, "We have forged a single team from the finest teams across our region."

That team faces common threats: terrorism, organized crime, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, illegal migration and human trafficking.

In the face of such widespread challenges, special operations forces must train at an elite level.

Like these massive real-world challenges, then, Fuerzas Comando tests the resolve of these elite warriors. They must train rigorously for such a demanding competition.

Competitors learn "how tough they can be," said Brian A. Nichols, U.S. Ambassador to Peru.

Fuerzas Comando 2016 competitors faced 15 physically and mentally challenging events. Many were outright massive and grueling; competitors overcame both the Andes mountains and the Pacific Ocean.

Some competitors reached the point of exhaustion during an almost 20-kilometer hike to the top of a 3,000-meter mountain in the Andes near Santiago de Tuna, Peru.

In the timed water event, competitors: carried a boat and telephone pole about one kilometer, swam in the ocean roughly 500 meters, rowed about 1750 meters, sprinted a quarter mile, and fired 9mm pistols for accuracy with arms shaking from cold and fatigue.

The competitors proved they are "an elite vanguard, a brotherhood of special operations forces warriors that spans the globe," Tidd said.

The brotherhood and single-team mentality aligns with the mission of Fuerzas Comando, promoting military-to-military relationships, increasing interoperability, and improving regional security.

"This is a great event to build interoperability and esprit de corps between the forces of the Americas," Nichols said. "It's been incredible to see how the teams have developed and how the countries have focused on the key skills they need in their own forces and within the region."

• Date Taken: 05.12.2016
• Date Posted: 05.12.2016 19:43
• Story ID: 197967
• Location: ANCON, PE