FORT BENNING, Ga. – Fourteen servicemembers of the U.S. Military Shooting Team will leave Monday for India where it will compete in the Conseil International du Sport Militaire – called CISM. Team USA is expected to compete against hundreds of shooters from approximately 30 countries from around the world.
Ten shooters from the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit of Fort Benning, Ga., as well as one from the Navy, one Army Reservist, one from the Navy Reserve and one Marine, will represented the United States, at the 4th Military World Games in Hyderabad, India, Oct. 12 to 21. Team USA leaves Fort Benning Monday for India.
The U.S. Team shooters are: Men’s Rifle Team – Staff Sgt. Armando R. Ayala, Sgt. Shane M. Barnhart, Sgt. Henry L. Gray and Spc. David R. Sprecher, all of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit; Women’s Rifle Team – Sgt. Kelly A. Dove and Spc. Nicole M. Cooper of the Army Marksmanship Unit, and Navy Ensign Sarah Bergman; Men’s Pistol Team – Sgt. 1st Class Eric G. Daniels, Sgt. 1st Class Thomas A. Rose, Staff Sgt. Robert S. Park II and Pvt. 2 Brad A. Balsley of the Army Marksmanship Unit; and Women’s Pistol Team – Marine Corps Capt. Janine Mills, Army Reservist Staff Sgt. Elizabeth A. Callahan and Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Sandra Uptagrafft.
With the U.S. Shooting Team were team captain Michael Behnke, rifle coach Frank Briggs, pistol coach Ray Arredondo and gunsmith Glenn Sulser, all of the Army Marksmanship Unit.
The CISM shooting championships consist of men’s and women’s rifle and pistol competitions. Rifle shooters compete with standard rifles at 300 meters in the prone, kneeling and standing positions in both rapid- and slow-fire matches. The pistol team will shoot center fire and military rapid fire championships.
Only the men’s teams’ scores count in the overall “Best Nation” awards; the women’s teams only compete for their own individual and team awards.
Countries expected to participate include Argentina, Belarus, Botswana, Canada, Czech, Central African, Cyprus, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Jamaica, Kenya, Latvia, Luxembourg, Nambia, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United States of America, Uzbekistan and Zambia.
(Formed in 1956 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to raise the standards of marksmanship throughout the U.S. Army, the Army Marksmanship Unit is assigned to the Accessions Support Brigade of the U.S. Army Accessions Command. The Marksmanship Unit trains its Soldiers to win competitions and enhances combat readiness through train-the-trainer clinics, research and development. For more information on the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, contact the Public Affairs Office at (706) 545-5436,
paula.j.randall@us.army.mil or
www.usamu.com.)
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