Sgt. Tyler Holloway of Wyoming Wins Army National Guard’s Best-of-the-best
Fourteen of the nation’s best National Guard junior enlisted Soldiers and noncommissioned officers competed in an intense, six-day competition throughout Tennessee to determine the Army National Guard's best-of-the-best from July 24 - 29, according to a press release from the Department of Military.
On July 29 Sgt. Tyler Holloway, with the Wyoming National Guard’s 115th Field Artillery Brigade, was declared the 2022 National Guard Noncommissioned Officer of the Year.
Sgt. Spencer Fayles, with the Utah National Guard’s 144th Area Support Medical Company, was declared the 2022 National Guard Soldier of the Year.
“Tennessee had the honor of hosting the competition this year and we’re proud of each of these Soldiers and the grit and determination they showed this week.” said Command Sgt. Maj. Dale Crockett, Tennessee’s State Command Sergeant Major. “We put these competitors through a rigorous competition that challenged them both mentally and physically, they are truly world class athletes and professionals.”
Fayles and Holloway will now represent the National Guard’s 330,000 Soldiers from the nation’s 54 states and territories at the Army Best Warrior competition this fall.
They were also selected as members of the Army National Guard’s Best Squad and will compete against the Active Army and Reserves’ Best Squads later this year.
According to a statement from the U.S. Department of Defense, the competition tested both the soldiers' individual and teamwork abilities, and contained more than 30 graded events, including fitness challenges, marksmanship drills, a high-value target extraction scenario, combat casualty care, water survival and a ruck march.
"It’s humor, he [Holloway] later said, that helped him and 13 other Soldiers withstand the hardships during the grueling, five-day competition in the humidity and heat of central and west Tennessee July 25-29," according to an article from the National Guard.
“I always try to laugh through the pain, and if I can joke around and make someone else smile and take his mind off the pain, then I know I’m making it easier for him and myself,” said Holloway, adding that a positive mindset helps him “keep truckin’.”
Army National Guard Best of the Best Competition 2022
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