Army Best Medic Competition Winners Announced, Soldiers from Colorado and Washington take home the win

Photo By Cpl. Adrian Pacheco | U.S. Army Sgt. Tyrel Trainor and Spc. Anchor Jennison of the 4th Infantry Division, are awarded the Meritorious Service Medal for finishing in 1st place during the 2021 Command Sgt. Maj. Jack L. Clark, Jr. U.S. Army Best Medic Competition (ABMC) on Fort Gordon, Ga., Jan. 28, 2021. To qualify for the competition, Soldiers must have already earned the Combat Medical Badge or the Expert Field Medical Badge. The ABMC took place from Jan. 25-28 at Fort Gordon, Ga. Soldiers competed in teams of two. The 72-hour event is physically and intellectually challenging. The Soldiers operated in a demanding, continuous, and realistic operational environment. Competitors conducted events such as the Army Combat Fitness Test, rifle marksmanship, simulated combat casualty care, a 28-station obstacle course, night land navigation, water survival (which includes jumping off of diving board into 12-feet of water), and more--including mystery events. This year's competition took place amid the corona virus global pandemic. The Soldiers reported early to participate in a restriction of movement process. The competition took place inside of a "COVID-bubble". The bubble required COVID testing and strict adherence to avoiding under 20 feet of contact with anyone outside of the bubble. Even those outside of the bubble were tested for the virus. This year's event was hosted by the Army's Regional Health Command-Atlantic. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Adrian Pacheco)  

FORT GORDON, GA, UNITED STATES

01.29.2021

Story by Stephanie Abdullah 

U.S. Army Medical Command

FORT GORDON, Georgia – Sgt. Tyrel Trainor and Spc. Anchor Jennison, both from 4th Infantry Division units out of Fort Carson, Colorado, are the winners of the 2021 Command Sgt. Maj. Jack L. Clark, Jr., U.S. Army Best Medic Competition (ABMC) that was held from Jan. 25-27, at Fort Gordon, Georgia.

To qualify to compete, Soldiers must have already earned the Combat Medical Badge or the Expert Field Medical Badge. Soldiers competed in teams of two in the 72-hour event that was designed to be physically and intellectually challenging.

The Soldiers operated in a demanding, continuous, and realistic operational environment that included challenges such as a simulated combat casualty care, a 28-station obstacle course, night land navigation, water survival which included jumping off of a diving board into 12-feet of water.

This year's competition took place amid the Coronavirus pandemic. The Soldiers reported early to participate in a restriction of movement process. The competition operated inside of a "COVID-19-bubble" which required COVID-19 testing and strict adherence to avoiding under 20 feet of contact with anyone outside of the bubble. Even those outside of the bubble were tested for the virus.

Trainor, who is a 68W Combat Medic said, “Winning matters.” The La Junter, Colorado, native said that having a great teammate helped him get through when it was “late, cold, or early.” “Keep on the path and anything is possible,” Trainor said.

Trainor’s teammate was Spc. Anchor Jennison from Port Townson, Washington. “It’s humbling to be here,” said Jennison who has been in the Army for just 22 months. Jennison echoed the importance of having a great teammate. “My teammate motivated me through trials and tribulations that I would have gone through much slower,” he said. “You can go a really long way if you want something really bad,” said Jennison.

The Army Surgeon General and Commanding General of the U.S. Army Medical Command Lt. Gen. R. Scott Dingle and his Command Sergeant Major, Command Sgt. Maj. Diamond D. Hough, hosted the event’s final award ceremony and awarded the winners with the Meritorious Service Medal.

Dingle proclaimed all 44 competitors as not only the Army’s best medics, but the best medics on the globe.

He awarded the first runners up Staff Sgt. Steven Murden and Sgt. Joseph Cooper from the 82nd Airborne Division the Army Commendation Medal.

Dingle awarded the Army Achievement Medal to Army Regional Health Command-Central Soldiers, Maj. Joseph Ahlborn and Staff Sgt. David McAfee, who were the second runners up.

The Command Sgt. Maj. Jack L. Clark, Jr. Army Best Medic Competition is dedicated to the 13th Command Sergeant Major of the U.S. Army Medical Command. Clark was one of the most respected leaders and noncommissioned officers in the history of the command who understood the important role of medics in the Army and the trust Soldiers and leaders of units in combat must have in the Army Medical Department.

The Army’s Regional Health Command Atlantic hosted this year’s competition.

For footage of this year’s event, see below:

1. Jennison photo: https://www.dvidshub.net/image/6493135/army-best-medic-competition-competitor-portraits

2. Trainor photo: https://www.dvidshub.net/image/6493136

3. Team video: https://www.dvidshub.net/video/781460/2021-command-sgt-maj-jack-l-clark-jr-us-army-best-medic-competition-competitors

4. Jennison Interview: https://www.dvidshub.net/video/781922/2021-army-best-medic-competition-winner-interview-spc-anchor-jennison

5. Trainor Interview: https://www.dvidshub.net/video/781924/2021-army-best-medic-competition-winner-interview-tyrel-trainor

6. Award Ceremony: https://www.dvidshub.net/video/781945

7. Finale video: https://www.dvidshub.net/video/781886/army-best-medic-competition-2021-summary-video

All images and video from the competition can be found at this link: https://www.dvidshub.net/unit/USAMEDCOM.

• Date Taken: 01.29.2021
• Date Posted: 01.29.2021 13:33
• Story ID: 387938
• Location: FORT GORDON, GA, US