NY Army National Guard Spec. Ilya Titov, a Rockaway Park resident, will participate in national Best Warrior event in July
1st Battalion 69th Infantry member was winner at Northeast Region National Guard Best Warrior competition
Camp Smith Training Site, NY (05/22/2018) — New York Army National Guard Specialist Illya Titov, a Rockaway Park resident, will be competing to be the top junior enlisted Soldier in the 340,000- member Army National Guard in July at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania.
Titov, a member of Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry, was named top enlisted Soldier in the Northeast following a competition at Camp Smith Training Site near Peekskill May 16-19.
Titov competed against Soldiers from New England and New Jersey to be the best in the National Guard's northeast region. He had previously won at the New York State event in April.
The competition tests a Soldier's military knowledge, military skills, physical fitness, marksmanship, and stamina.
Soldiers in the ranks of private, private 1st class, and specialist compete in the enlisted category. Soldiers in the ranks of sergeant, staff sergeant and sergeant first class, compete against other Army National Guard non-commissioned officers.
Titov score higher than the non-commissioned officers who competed, according to New York Army National Guard Command Sgt. Major David Piwowarski.
Piwowarski was in charge of the four-day regional competition.
"The 69th Infantry is known for having the best training and leadership and I wanted to see how far the mentoring they gave me would take me," Titov said in explaining why he entered the contest.
"Also, my 1st sergeant told me I had to win," he added.
Titov enlisted in the New York Army National Guard in 2013 and was promoted to his current rank in 2016.
Another member of the 1st Battalion, 69th Infantry --Sgt. Quentin Davis-- was named best warrior in the non-commissioned officer category for the region.
Davis will also be competing in the national competition.
The evaluated tasks, specifically designed to mirror what Soldiers must do in combat, included urban warfare simulations, a 12-mile forced march, Soldier tasks and battle drills, marksmanship and board interviews, physical fitness tests, and written exams.
The competition tested each Soldier in various events such as:
• Ten "hands-on" Army warrior tasks.
• First aid on the battlefield.
• Land navigation using a map and compass.
• The Army Physical Fitness Test.
• Day and night land navigation.
• Stress shooting, where Soldiers must negotiate obstacles and perform physical tasks while shooting;
And a military appearance board answering questions of the Guard's senior enlisted force.
The 12-mile road march was conducted at the United States Military Academy at West Point, after the Soldiers were airlifted in on a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter. The competition tested each Soldier in various events such as:
The Soldiers also had the opportunity to compete and earn the German Armed Forces Proficiency Badge thanks to an arrangement with the German Army Liaison Office at the United States Military Academy. West Point is located just across the Hudson River from Camp Smith.
The German Armed Forces Proficiency Badge is one of the few approved foreign awards American service members can wear. The first phase consist of the basic fitness test, which included an 11x10 meter sprint, chin-ups, and 1000 meter run.
Titov's military awards include the Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal, and the Army Reserve Components Achievement Medal, the Air Assault Badge and the German Armed Forces Proficiency Badge.
Titov holds an associated degree in business. He is currently serving in Joint Task Force Empire Shield, the New York National Guard security augmentation force in New York City.
Media Attachments
New York Army National Guard Spc. Ilya Titov, an infantryman assigned to Company A, 1-69th Infantry Regiment, completes the 12-mile ruck march portion of the Region 1 Best Warrior Competition at West Point, N.Y., May 19, 2018. Titov won the junior enlisted category of the competition and will represent the northeast in the Army National Guard competition at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania, 22-27 July.
New York National Guard
Col. Richard Goldenberg, 518-786-4581Share this Story
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