Last week, 23 Army athletes went up against competitors from their sister services and ally nation Ukraine in the Military Adaptive Sports Virtual Challenge. The sporting event was held Sept. 13-17 with certain events livestreamed on social media.
The Virtual Challenge was open to all wounded, ill and injured active duty service members and veterans who were selected to participate as primary or alternate athletes in this year’s Department of Defense Warrior Games. All told, they competed in 11 adaptive sporting events as part of their recovery journeys.
Army athletes aimed for victory in powerlifting, track, archery, cycling, shooting, golf, wheelchair basketball, swimming, indoor rowing and the body weight fitness challenge known as the Fit Games. Army athletes placed first in 41 events, second in 12 events and third in 10 events.
The challenge was held during the same timeframe when the Warrior Games would’ve taken place, had it not been canceled, but that is the only thing the two events had common. The Virtual Challenge was not an official Warrior Games sanctioned event or program. It was a separate effort led by the Service Branches using available technology to provide the event virtually. It was a special opportunity for world-class active duty and veteran athletes to show what they can do in the pool, on the track or the court.
Most of the events were livestreamed on the Army Recovery Care Program Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/usarmyarcp/
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