Photo By Lance Cpl. Paige Verry | Royal Marines encourage a U.S. Marine to finish the 10 mile team row.... read more read more
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The sun illuminated the audience as they listened to the invocation and stood for the march on the colors. The crowd was attentive as the Quantico Marine Corps Band performed and flawlessly marched off the turf of Butler Stadium. From one end to the other, jerseys and a parade of colors painted the bleachers. People stood atop the hill surrounding the stadium and gathered below as the Royal Marines and the United States Marines found their positions on the field. It was time for soccer.
American and British Marines gathered at Butler Stadium, Marine Corps Base Quantico, April 16, 2019 for the kickoff of the Royal Marines Sports Association Tour (RMSAT). This is where the #CorpsWars began – with an opening ceremony and a soccer game in the spring sun on a Tuesday afternoon.
“We trained quite hard for this as it seems,” said Royal Marine, Cpl. Ben Laws, a recruit physical trainer and athlete of RMSAT. “We actually got teams together a few months ago. We knew we wouldn’t have it easy coming to [the U.S. Marine’s] backyard.”
The respect the Marines have for each other hasn’t gone unnoticed. During the tiebreaker for functional fitness, where each team had to row 10 miles, the Royal Marines took the win. Rather than celebrating, they proceeded to cheer on the U.S. Marines to the finish. Sportsmanship and camaraderie continued throughout the rest of the week in several events, such as golf, basketball, rugby, powerlifting, skeet shooting and boxing.
“The relationship between the U.S. Marines and the Royal Marines has always been a good one, and for them to come all this way and compete with us strengthens our bond that much more,” said Sgt. Daniel Johnson, martial arts instructor trainer, Martial Arts Center of Excellence, and functional fitness contender.
The Marines’ experience aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico culminated with a ten-fight boxing match, where the Royals and the U.S. Marines tied 5 to 5. While the Royal Marines took the win in the RMSAT games, it was ultimately a win on both sides.
As Laws said, “to come over here to America and work with our brother Marine Corps is something we want to invest in – we really want to keep that relationship.”
| Date Taken: | 04.29.2019 |
| Date Posted: | 04.30.2019 12:22 |
| Story ID: | 319909 |
| Location: | QUANTICO , VA, US |
| Web Views: | 398 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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