Former IDF Chief Askenazi
Photo courtesy of the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit
IDF officers compete for fitness title
Commanders take part in division-wide fitness exercises; Paratroopers triumph over Golani Bridage
Which IDF unit won the coveted combat fitness trophy? Which officer commanded the various heats? Which corps has the best fitness level overall? The combat fitness department has been toiling away at the results – and they have a few twists to them.
Over the past few months the School for Combat Fitness at Wingate, known as "Bahad 8" (Army Training Base 8) has held thousands of fitness exercises for combat officers ranking from company commander to the rank of brigade commander.
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The exercises included navigational drills, running across quicksand and water, climbing exercies and obstacle courses to name a few.
The tests aimed to examined the foundation stones of an IDF combat soldier, including: stamina, muscular endurance, firing skills, stress-navigation and overcoming obstacles. According to IDF data, 90% of the IDF's combat soldiers took part in the exercises with 96% of the participants passing.
As with any competition the winners received trophies from GOC Army Headquarters Major-General Sami Turgeman. First place in the Special Forces Division went, for the third consecutive year, to the Air Force Extraction Unit 669, with the Maglan Company and the Duvdevan Unit sharing second place.
Among the reconnaissance regiments, the Nahal Reconnaissance battalion won first place followed by the Paratrooper Reconnaissance battalion in second place and the Oketz Unit – the IDF's canine special forces unit – in third.
The corps with the best overall fitness level was the Paratroopers who shared first place with the School for Infantry Corps Professions and Squad Commanders, followed by the Golani brigade. The highly thought of Givati Brigade didn't place.
The 401st Brigade won first place among the Mobilized Forces, while the 7th Armored Brigade had to make do with second place.
The commander of the Shaldag Unit was awarded with first place among the Special Forces commanders while the commander of the Military Engineering School (Bahad 14) won first place among the Field Unit commanders.
"Our goal is to examine officer fitness and create a sense of competition among the various units," said the head of the combat fitness department Colonel Avi Moya.
"The importance of combat fitness is more prominent today than ever before. It's a well known fact that soldiers who lacked combat fitness couldn't function and fulfill their duties so it's important that commanders be fit – their troops will follow suit."
Colonel Moyal noted that this is the first year in which passing the combat fitness exercises is a condition for promotion.
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