Sandhurst 2015: Cadets Ascend Through Teamwork

By Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton

108th Training Command (IET) Public Affairs

WEST POINT, N.Y. — “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” —Helen Keller

From a neighborhood soccer match to the Olympics, competition allows us to push ourselves to the limit, connect to like minded individuals, and strive for excellence. For both players and spectators, the spirit of competition has the power to bond people, communities, and cultures.

The world’s strongest allies, the United States and the United Kingdom, have been throwing down the gauntlet for the better part of five decades, engaging the top teams from the respective service academies in a test of strength, endurance, skills and knowledge.

Sandhurst began as a competition between the United States Military Academy at West Point and the Royal Military Academy in 1967, as a way for the two countries to enhance professional development and showcase military excellence.

Since then, it has expanded to 58 Cadets from the Escuela Militar in Chile charge up a ski slope with casualty in tow during the first day of competition at the 2015 Sandhurst competition. This year, Chile joined 58 competitive teams from eight different countries competing for the coveted British Officer’s sword. see SANDHURST 2015 page 34 Photo by Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton, 108th Training Command (IET), Public Affairs

competitive teams representing eight different countries; all fighting for the coveted British officer’s sword, the original grand prize presented at the event’s inception.

“Back when I did Sandhurst, these different events offered at the school were kind of a precursor to what you wanted to be. For example, I wanted to be an infantry officer and as an infantry officer, Sandhurst was what you did,” said Brig. Gen. A. Ray Royalty, 108th Training Command (IET) Deputy Commanding General.

Royalty, who graduated from West Point in 1983, was class president and competed in the Sandhurst competition. He now oversees the Army Reserve units who facilitate the train-up leading up to the day of the competition.

This year, Royalty witnessed many firsts. For instance, 2015 included the U.S. Army’s Officer Candidate School, a team comprised primarily of former noncommissioned officers, most of them with combat experience.

“My experience with Sandhurst was a lot different from what I’ve seen over the past few days,” Royalty said. “Back then it was the Brits and us. Today, it has grown into a huge multi-service and multi-national event. But the way it is today, you see a lot of intermingling between the different components and different nations that we didn’t get until we became active duty lieutenants. I think in just that aspect alone it’s a good thing. It’s a great thing.”

One of the units under Royalty’s charge, the 104th Training Division (LT) headquartered at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, regularly supports the event by providing skills training on a select list of Army warrior tasks predetermined by the Academy at West Point in the days leading up to the competition. Those tasks vary year by year but generally include weapons familiarization, marksmanship, obstacle course negotiation and first aid related tasks.

Each team, consisting of eight males and one female, is then given the opportunity to practice those tasks in a round-robin format. The actual events that make up the competition are closely guarded secrets until the day of the contest. The tasks the 104th provides during the train-up may or may not be seen in the actual competition.

Sgt. 1st Class Mark Sargent, 3rd Battalion, 304th Infantry (USMA), 104th Training Division (LT), has been supporting the Sandhurst train-up for four years straight.

“Every year you get a multitude of teams from different countries and most of them are young kids who have never seen things like the obstacle course. This gives them a chance to test and develop

A team of cadets from the United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., carry an injured comrade up a ski slope just outside of post during the first day of competition of the 2015 Sandhurst competition. This year, 58 competing teams from eight different countries are all competing for the coveted British officer’s sword awarded to the top overall team in the two-day competition. Photo by Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton, 108th Training Command (IET), Public Affairs

some confidence in their abilities before they get into the actual competition.”

“This competition is a great multi-national tool for these future leaders and it’s an important mission and benefit for not only my unit but the Army Reserve as a whole,” Sargent said. “We provide the first impression of what an Army Reserve Soldier looks like. They have the opportunity to see that while we may be Reserve Soldiers, we’re just as motivated and professional as the rest of the military.”

But the Soldiers of the 104th aren’t the only ones who see a benefit in the competition. Those who strive to be the best certainly see its value as well.

“This competition definitely brings out the competitive spirit in all of us. Obviously we want to win, but we also cheer for our fellow ROTC comrades as well as the international teams,” said Matthew Wolfel, a cadet on scholarship with the ROTC program at Penn State University, now competing in his second Sandhurst event.

“There are a lot of mind games and a lot of things where you have to think on your feet. You just can’t blow your way through it. At each station they present you with a task and you have to stop and think about the best way to accomplish that task. It’s not about one person. It takes your whole group working

Sgt. Noah Liebel, 3rd battalion, 304th Infantry (USMA), 104th Training Division (LT), teaches cadets from the Ahmed Bin Muhammad Military College in Qatar casualty evacuation procedures on the final day of preparation for the 2015 Sandhurst competition held at the United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. This year, 58 teams from eight different countries are competing for the coveted British officer’s sword in the two-day annual event. Photo by Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton, 108th Training Command (IET), Public Affairs

together as one team to accomplish the mission,” added Wolfel.

But in keeping with the spirit of the Sandhurst competition, Royalty sees teamwork on a whole different level.

“I’ve had a lot of memories come back to me over the past week just observing this trainup. It’s nice to see that the Army Reserve, and my units in particular, have a hand in the over arching goal of Sandhurst, and that is one team, one fight.”

Perhaps the greatest take away for Royalty and others at Sandhurst this week is that no one ascends alone. It takes grit and determination from every individual functioning as one unit, or one team, to make it to the top.