Registration is now open for the 2016 U.S. Army Small Arms Championship.
The competition will take place March 13-19 at the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit range complex at Fort Benning, Georgia. The event will be hosted by the marksmanship unit and the Maneuver Center of Excellence.
The all-Army competition is free and open to all soldiers, including West Point and ROTC cadets.
During the event, soldiers will compete in separate classes: cadet, novice, open and professional. Classes are determined based on soldiers' previous competition experience.
"Soldiers will have the opportunity to demonstrate their marksmanship capabilities and represent their command during this premier marksmanship contest," Lt. Col. Bret Tecklenburg, commander of the Army Marksmanship Unit, said in a statement. "Results of this event include soldiers sharpening their marksmanship skills through the excellent quality of expert instruction that we provide and the day-to-day interactions with the best marksmen the Army has to offer."
Each competing team will have four firing members and one alternate firing member or coach.
To allow major Army commands, the opportunity to field teams for the competition, specific allocations for each command have been reserved until Feb. 17.
For example, each division has two reserved team spots. Training and Doctrine Command has six team allocations, U.S. Army Europe has four, the 75th Ranger Regiment has two, Joint Special Operations Command has four, the Army Reserve has six and the Army National Guard has seven.
After Feb. 17, all remaining slots will be given to individual soldiers on a first come, first served basis.
Registration for all other competitors ends Feb. 26. Late entries will not be accepted.
There is room in the competition for 260 entries. Once registration exceeds 260 entries, soldiers will be placed on a standby list for the competition.
Kyle Ward, the Army Marksmanship Unit's chief of competitions, said in a statement that the Army Small Arms Championship is a unique event that allows soldiers to measure their skills against some of the military's best marksmen.
Competitors also will have plenty of firing time and training from top Army Marksmanship Unit shooters and instructors, he said. They also will have the chance to earn Excellence in Competition marksmanship badges and credit points toward their Distinguished Rifle and Pistol designation in an EIC Match during the event. The prestigious EIC badge takes precedence over standard qualification badges.
Staff Sgt. Patrick Franks, U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, competes during the service pistol match at the 55th Interservice Pistol Championships, which took place June 15-20, 2014.
Photo Credit: Michael Molinaro/Army
Event organizers recommend participants bring their unit-assigned weapons and optics, although the Army Marksmanship Unit will provide equipment if needed. AMU also will provide ammunition to all competitors.
All individual competitors and teams must preregister by fax, e-mail or regular mail.
For teams, coaches or team captains should forward registration forms for each team member, listing all competitors and team-support members.
Paperwork can be sent to Clarence Fedrick by fax at (706) 545-6252 or by e-mail at clarence.j.fedrick.civ@mail.mil. E-mail registrations also can be sent to roscoe.j.castle.civ@mail.mil.
Mail registrations can be sent to Commander, U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, ATTN: Competitions/S3, 7031 Bills Street, Fort Benning, GA 31905-3103.
More information also can be found on AMU's website.
