An unusually warm day in central Minnesota set the tone for the 2026 Minnesota Best Warrior Competition. The twist came within hours, sunshine turned to rain, the ground turned to mud before snowflakes fell from the sky. Over three days, Camp Ripley Training Center saw highs drop from 70 degrees to just 30, in time for one of the state’s most demanding competitions.
Twenty-seven Minnesota National Guard service members and NATO partners, Canada and Croatia, arrived at Camp Ripley Training Center, to participate in the Minnesota Best Warrior Competition April 15-18, 2026. “This isn’t just a competition,” said Minnesota’s Command Senior Enlisted Leader, Command Sgt. Maj. Jason Rost. “It’s a crucible.”
For more than 72-hours, competitors traversed over 23 miles and executed 27 events designed to replicate real-world combat scenarios. From live demolitions and wet gap crossings to night land navigation and non-standard live fire ranges, participants fired more than 24,000 rounds across multiple weapons systems.
But the numbers don’t tell the full story. By the end of the first day, Sgt. Victoria Woolford’s feet had already begun to blister. With more than half the competition ahead, every step was a decision to keep going.
“I was really pushing myself to the limit, even when I felt like I was already past my limit,” said Woolford, from St. Francis, Minn., who serves as a small arms/towed artillery repairer with the 434th Support Maintenance Company, 347th Regional Support Group. “With the ruck marching especially, there was a lot of discomfort, but I wanted to make sure I completed what I started and be a good example for my younger siblings.”
Woolford, who has served for more than five years, believes in seeing things through to the end. It’s a value she credits her family for instilling in her growing up.
During the Valor Ruck, competitors marched more than 12 miles, stopping at stations modeled after real-world acts of valor.
At one station, competitors engaged targets with an M110A1 NATO semi-automatic (sniper) rifle, like U.S. Navy Special Warfare Operator First Class (SEAL) Christopher Scott Kyle. At another station, inspired by Sgt. 1st Class Alwyn Cashe, they drug a 90-lb rescue randy before engaging targets with an M240B machine gun.
For Army Sgt. Abigail Meyers, from Bloomington, Minn., who serves as a human resources specialist with Detachment 1, Joint Force Headquarters, the defining moment came on the final day of the competition and one of her last events, the wet gap crossing.
“I remember the initial shock of getting into the river,” said Meyers, as snow fell around her. “The gasp of air that leaves your body, there’s really no amount of mental preparation you can do. You just have to get in and keep moving.”
With soaked equipment and freezing temperatures, even simple tasks became difficult.
“When we got out of the water, we had to fire 30 rounds at a target,” added Meyers. “I remember my gloves being sopping wet as I tried to open my fingers enough to fire.”
After she completed the event, the cold continued to affect her. She was later treated for hypothermia. But for her, that didn’t matter. What mattered was that she didn’t give up.
“I don’t like to be a quitter,” she said. “By that point, I had already made it so far, and there was no way I was going to back out of this.”
Each station forced competitors to move from exhaustion to execution as they were tested not only on skill, but also under stress.
Despite the intensity of the competition, participants consistently leaned on each other throughout the weekend. “The competition was very tough; it was mentally, physically and emotionally tough,” said Army Staff Sgt. John Parsons, from Dawson, Minn., who serves as a cannon crewmember with the 1st Battalion, 175th Regional Training Institute. “Coming into this, I didn’t realize what a big deal this competition was, and then I get here and they have 140 support staff putting this on. We aren’t the only ones working long hours and staying up late.”
The Minnesota National Guard redesigned the Best Warrior Competition after 2024, shifting from task-based testing to mission-based scenarios. Instead of isolated events, competitors were placed into situations that mirrored real-world operations, which forced them to adapt, solve problems and perform under pressure. “This really rekindled my soldier mindset,” said Pfc. Payton Gessford, from Alexandria, Minn., who serves as an aviation operation specialist with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 34th Combat Aviation Brigade. “It gave me the motivation to keep progressing in my military career and give everything my best.”
In the end Staff Sgt. John Parsons and Spc. Thomas Ogdahl, from Cambridge, Minn., who serves as an infantry Soldier with Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 194th Armor Regiment, were named the 2026 Minnesota National Guard noncommissioned officer and Soldier of the Year.
“This is a test of grit and skill,” said Ogdahl. “Any competition is a good evaluation to figure out your strengths and shortcomings and then develop those things and become a better leader.”
Army Staff Sgt. Derek Kotzer, from Lino Lakes, Minn., who serves as a cavalry scout with Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 94th Cavalry Regiment and Spc. Hunter Goetsch, from Albertville, Minn., who serves as a joint fire support specialist with Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment were the runners-up for noncommissioned officer and Soldier of the Year.
In the international category, Croatian Army Pvt. Filip Palijan, from Vukovar, Croatia, who serves as explosive ordnance technician, with the Military Intelligence Company was recognized as the runner-up, while Canadian Sgt. Ryan Griffiths, from Bragg Creek, Alberta, Canada, who serves as an infantry soldier with the 38th Canadian Brigade Group’s Royal Regina Rifles took the 2026 Best International competitor title.
“As the old proverb goes, iron sharpens iron,” said Rost. “The friction of this competition has filed away the rust, leaving only the hardened steel beneath.”
Minnesota’s winners will move on to compete against the best Soldiers and noncommissioned officers from across the Midwest at the Region IV Best Warrior Competition, hosted this year by the Michigan National Guard at Fort Custer, Mich., April 29 through May 3, 2026.
“I’m excited to represent the state and go there and do my best just like this,” added Parsons.