Inaugural Army Strong Collegiate Shooting Championships slated for March
By Michael Molinaro USAMU PAO
FORT BENNING, Ga. –-(Ammoland.com)- The U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit is excited to announce that the inaugural Army Strong Collegiate Shooting Championships, on course to be the biggest multiple-discipline, shoulder-to-shoulder gathering of collegiate and junior shooters in the history of competitive shooting, will commence next March 13-18 here at Fort Benning.
The dynamic format will draw the top college and junior shooters from the entire country competing in four distinct championships: the National Rifle Association Intercollegiate Pistol Championships; the NRA Intercollegiate Rifle Club Championship; the Scholastic Steel Challenge Collegiate Championship; and the Scholastic Clay Target Program Challenge.
“The USAMU, home to the absolute best marksman, marksmanship instructors, and gunsmiths in the world, is the ideal location to hold this ground-breaking Army Strong Collegiate Shooting Championships,” said Lt. Col. Daniel Hodne, commander, USAMU. “Our newest generation of collegiate champions across multiple shooting disciplines will earn their titles at the ‘Home of Champions.'”
Hosting the most prestigious of matches has become as synonymous to the “Home of Champions” as winning national and world championships. A number of world-class championships have been held on the ranges of the USAMU in the past few years, including two International Shooting Sports Federation World Cups (this past year’s event being the largest international shooting sports event to ever take place in North America,) USA Shooting National Rifle and Pistol Championships, the annual U.S. Small Arms Championships, and countless JROTC, collegiate and regional championships. The USAMU aims to make this an annual event.
The ASCSC is designed to connect the Army with and promote youth and collegiate shooting sports. It aligns directly with the youth and collegiate shooting programs of the NRA Competitive Shooting Division, SSC, and SCTP, which all foster junior and collegiate participation in prestigious competitions while promoting firearms safety. The USAMU connects to America’s youth through teaching, coaching, and mentoring junior shooters throughout the year, and Soldiers make ideal mentors and role models for our nation’s youth. In these respects, the Army’s hosting of this event a perfect fit.
The ASCSC will be sandwiched around the electrifying Army Strong Experience, hosted by Maneuver Center of Excellence March 15-16. This event showcases the capabilities of the Army through demonstrations by an array of units on the Army post. Spectators can see the “Rangers in Action” demo, featuring the abilities of the world’s most advanced infantry Soldiers, or the “shock-and-awe” of the Hands-on Training Exercise (HOTEX), which shows off the lethality of some of the Army’s mechanized and armored forces.
Attendees will also have the opportunity to witness the “Airborne 5000” demonstration and Fort Benning Silver Wings Skydiving exhibition, and the jaw-dropping shooting demonstration performed by members of the USAMU Shotgun platoon. The Army Adventure Semi, a culmination of hands-on and interactive systems, will also be on hand enabling the public to get a glimpse of what it’s like to be a tank crew member, an Apache pilot, or an explosive ordnance disposal team member, among others.
“The USAMU is grateful to the Maneuver Center of Excellence and Fort Benning for teaming up with us in connecting America’s Army to America’s people in a powerful way through the Army Strong Experience,” Hodne concluded. “There is no better way to showcase our Army and let our fellow citizens experience and witness ‘a Strength like no other’ than seeing our Soldiers in action. The positive Army impressions to be generated will last a lifetime.”
Check out www.usamu.com for information on the event and stay tuned for updates as the event draws closer.
About USAMU:
The USAMU enhances the Army’s recruiting effort, raises the standard of the Army’s marksmanship proficiency, and supports the Army’s small arms research and development initiatives in order to raise the Army’s overall combat readiness. For more information on the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, contact the Public Affairs Office at (706) 545-5436, Michael.Molinaro@usaac.army.mil or www.USAMU.com.