Photo By Staff Sgt. Fatima Konteh | U.S. Army Sergeant 1st Class Joshua Richmond and U.S. Army Sergeant 1st Class Mark...... read more read more
SAN ANTONIO – During the 2017 All-American Bowl (AAB), the nation’s premier high school football game, U.S. Army Soldiers are working with youth organizations and other community partners to deepen public understanding of the vast educational and career sources available in the military. The U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (USAMU) Shotgun Team, Fort Benning, Ga., performed demonstrations and interacted with these groups Thursday Jan. 5, in support of AAB.
The team is made up of some of the world's top trap and skeet shooters who track, aim and shoot at 5-inch clay targets going up to 70 mph using 12-gauge shotguns. These marksmen have competed and won in local, state, national and international competitions, two of whom are Olympic medalists.
The first part of the demonstration included the shotgun team instructing Army advocates on how to properly fire a shotgun, ensuring each person felt comfortable with the firearm before letting them shoot at clay targets.
The team then moved over to the trap and skeet range where they exhibited their marksmanship skills shooting clay targets from behind their backs or between their legs. Throughout the show, they were energetic and encouraged audience participation to deliver a once in a lifetime experience.
Olympic medalist U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Richmond, said, “This is my eighth All-American Bowl experience and it's something that I enjoy coming to every year.
It's a great way for us to kick off our new year. We get to come out here and interact with the [Army advocates] consisting of principals, CEOs, teachers, coaches, and parents. This is something we're naturally good at: showing them a talent and skill that the Army has trained us to do proficiently and telling our Army story.”
Joining the USAMU is an opportunity that allows shooters to capitalize on their natural skills while serving their country at the same time. These Soldiers also serve as ambassadors for the Army, by showcasing their talent that embodies the Army's values: leadership, duty, responsibility, selfless-service, honor, integrity and personal courage.
When they aren't competing and winning Olympic gold medals, the members of USAMU help fellow Soldiers enhance their shooting skills by hosting marksmanship clinics to share their knowledge about the effective and safe use of firearms.
U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Glenn Eller, USAMU and 2008 Olympic gold-medalist, said he believes personal courage is most important for the success of each team member. “When you're standing there by yourself on the line competing, you have to dig deep,” said Eller.
Eller also expressed the importance of camaraderie within the team, “We're family and when we put our minds together we can get great things accomplished.”
The 2017 All-American Bowl focused on becoming greater than and Richmond tied that directly to his military career. “I'm chasing a dream everyday, and that is to compete and become a [gold] medalist at some point,” he said. “So it goes back to the journey and what it takes to get there. Just being great at what you do doesn't always get you the medal, but the journey that it took you on to get there sometimes is more important than just getting the medal.”
| Date Taken: | 01.05.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 01.10.2017 16:57 |
| Story ID: | 219994 |
| Location: | SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 159 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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