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    In Depth: Q&A with WG Team SOCOM Athlete Sgt. 1st Class Howie Sanborn

    CHICAGO, IL, UNITED STATES

    07.05.2017

    Story by Staff Sgt. Kulani Lakanaria 

    3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne)

    Sanborn joined the Army in 2000, he has been to Infantry, Airborne, Ranger and Military Freefall Schools. He was assigned to the 18th Airborne Corps in the Long Range and Surveillance Unit and completed two deployments. Later he joined the U.S. Army Golden Knights Military Freefall Team and had spent 5 years on the demonstration team.
    This year is Sanborn’s final year participating in the games as an athlete on team Special Operations Command:

    Howie, what is your training regimen like leading up to the Warrior Games?
    I train for sports year-round primarily for triathlons, I swim, cycle and use my racing chair for about 15-20 hours a week. That doesn’t include all the other stuff we do as far as meal prep, nutrition, recovery, massage. I train full time.
    You won five Gold Medals, what’s your secret?
    My secret to win five gold medals: Hard work. You got to put the time in. Especially with the racing wheel chair on the track the technique is super important you may be the strongest guy but you won’t necessarily be the fastest guy. You have to work with the coaches and get the technique down. Once you get on the track, you have to leave it out there. Go hard all the way until the end.
    This is the first time the Warrior Games has been held in Chicago instead of a military installation, how do you like Chicago?
    Chicago holds a special place in my heart after I got hurt. I rehabilitated here in Chicago. Without coming to Chicago, I don’t know if I would have made it to this level, both in my rehab and in sports. It’s cool to come out here and a lot of my friends are able to see me compete. I’m really glad it’s in Chicago. The Warrior Games is finally getting the attention it deserves. We can raise the awareness for disabled veterans. People can see when we come back from combat and our injuries we still have a lot to offer. We prove it in these competitions.
    How many warrior games have you participated in?
    Technically it’s my third one. I’ve done one in 2014 when it was with the Olympic Committee. I’ve done West Point last year. So this will be my last Warrior Games. The Warrior Games have grown immensely. When I first started it was basically friends and family. It’s awesome and we like them to cheer us on. They already know about disabled veterans, they have gone through it with us. We need the Warrior Games to be this big so other people can learn about what is going on with their disabled veterans.

    Do you have any advice for future Warrior Games Athletes?
    Anyone going through any type of traumatic injury or illness has to find a purpose. Live a purpose-driven life and set goals. The Warrior Games has really helped me do that. When you make the team and they say, you are going to hand-cycle six months from now it gives you something to focus on. You will wake up every morning and train and have that purpose to keep moving forward. If you don’t have that, it’s easy to sit on the couch and give up. You come out here with your brothers and sisters who you trained with and it’s as if you aren’t even injured anymore.

    The Warrior Games were established in 2010 as a way to enhance the recovery and rehabilitation of wounded, injured and ill warriors like Sanborn through adaptive sports programs.
    SOCOM’s Warrior Care Program (Care Coalition) mission is to assist Special Operations Forces (SOF) wounded, injured and ill service members and their families with advocacy after life-altering trauma or illness to enhance their quality of life and strengthen SOF readiness across the enterprise.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 07.05.2017
    Date Posted: 07.07.2017 10:19
    Story ID: 240307
    Location: CHICAGO, IL, US

    Web Views: 111
    Downloads: 0

    PUBLIC DOMAIN