FORT MCCOY, Wis. — A select group of 15 Wisconsin Army National Guard Soldiers competed in the 2022 State Best Warrior Competition April 7-10 at Fort McCoy.

Seven noncommissioned officers and eight enlisted Soldiers vied for the opportunity to represent Wisconsin in the upcoming regional Best Warrior Competition next month.

Sgt. Josiah Bell, a resident of Rochester, Minnesota, with Company B, 1st Battalion, 128th Infantry Battalion, emerged as Wisconsin’s Noncommissioned Officer of the Year, while Spc. Joshua Kleinhans, a resident of Kiel, Wisconsin, with Battery B, 1st Battalion, 121st Field Artillery, will compete in the regional competition as Wisconsin’s Soldier of the Year.

For three days, competitors from all over Wisconsin faced off against one another in challenges that tested their mental and physical aptitudes. Events included the Army Combat Fitness Test, M4 carbine and M249 machine gun qualifications, a physical appearance board, essay writing, land navigation, calling for fire, a simulated medical range, a written test, 12-mile ruck march, and hand grenade qualification.

“The purpose of the Best Warrior Competition is to bring the best of the best together to try to determine the best noncommissioned officer (NCO) and Soldier within the state and within every company, battalion, and brigade,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Curtis Patrouille, the Wisconsin Army National Guard’s senior enlisted leader. “They have gone through several competitions to try to determine their best representative to send to the competition.”

Soldiers and NCOs had hectic days – the events of the competition were kept a secret from them until they showed up at the event itself. In addition, Patrouille incorporated additional mystery events like the dead-man’s hang and reorganizing flags in order of precedence.

“What I love about this event every year is the sheer determination that I see from the individuals competing year in and year out – total exhaustion, sleep deprived, and yet they just keep pushing and pushing,” said Patrouille.

The competition also helped Soldiers to gauge and improve upon their basic soldiering skills.

“Competing in this competition is definitely an asset to becoming a better Soldier all around,” said Sgt. Tyler Buksa, a competitor with Company D, 1st Battalion, 147th Aviation. “There’s a lot of events throughout the competition that better yourself as a Soldier and as an NCO. It’s a very good experience, and I highly recommend it to all NCOs and Soldiers to give it a shot.”

Each competitor brought a sponsor who has been with them in preparation for and throughout the entire competition. Without them, the event wouldn’t be possible.

“One of the fun things about being a sponsor is seeing these events and the competition between the different Soldiers,” said Sgt. Adrianne Maniscalco, a sponsor from Company D, 147th Aviation. “There’s a lot of Soldiers here from different units and jobs with different strengths and weaknesses.”

Both the competitors and the sponsors had to be familiar with different tasks that all Soldiers are taught as they go through basic combat training in order to be successful.

“These are basic Soldier skills that each and every Soldier needs to have, and there’s no advantage to any one job,” said Patrouille. “I love that this is a fair and equitable competition.”

The Minnesota National Guard will host the regional Best Warrior Competition from May 11-15 at Camp Ripley, Minnesota.