2021 Team Navy Road to the Warrior Games

Stay connected with Team Navy on Facebook and Instagram, and join us in cheering for the team at the 2021 Warrior Games!

Thank you to the 2021 Team Navy presenting sponsor Semper Fi & America's Fund and supporting sponsor Deloitte for their generous support.

 

The 2021 Department of Defense Warrior Games will be hosted at Disney's ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida from September 12-22. The wounded warrior athletes will represent the Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Coast Guard, Air Force and Special Operations Command.

The DoD Warrior Games were established in 2010 as a way to enhance the recovery and rehabilitation of wounded warriors and to expose them to adaptive sports. 

 

Teams include active-duty service members and veterans with upper-body, lower-body, and spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, visual impairment, serious illnesses and post-traumatic stress. The Paralympic-style competitive event will feature 12 sports: archery, cycling, field, golf, indoor rowing, powerlifting, shooting (precision air sports), sitting volleyball, swimming, track, wheelchair basketball and wheelchair rugby.

Sport of the Week #1 - Archery

Whether athletes are practicing at home or competing during the Warrior Games, attention and focus is key to success. Click here to read about para archery - from the types of bows to sports origin.

 

Sport of the Week #2 - Cycling

Putting time on your bike and properly fueling your body is key to the success with cycling. From the DoD Warrior Games events to the sport’s origin, click here to read the four facts you need to know about cycling.

 

Sport of the Week #3 - Field

Discus and shot put depend on explosive strength. However, it’s not just muscle power that helps athletes dominate in this sport. Shot putters and discus throwers also need quickness to generate momentum. From the explaining the term athletics to the Paralympic Games history, click here to read the five facts you need to know about field.

 

Sport of the Week #4 - Golf

As of 2019, approximately 24.3 million people played golf in the US, and a total of over 107 million people played, watched or read about golf. From an overview of golf’s origins to your chances of getting a hole-in-one, click here to read a list of six facts to know.

 

Sport of the Week #5 - Indoor Rowing

Rowing machines use up to 86% of your muscles, according to the National Institute of Health. Although, it’s typically considered low-impact for the average user, rowing burns serious calories without putting the added stress on your joints. It allows you to control the movement and pace. Click here to read an overview of the sport, ranging from indoor rowing’s origins to competition style, here are a list of five facts to know.

 

Sport of the Week #6 - Powerlifting

Para powerlifting is the ultimate test of upper body strength. You’ll often see athletes lifting more than their own body weight. Click here to read an overview of the sport, ranging from its Paralympic Games history to explaining the difference between weightlifting vs powerlifting, here are four fact to know.

 

Sport of the Week #7 - Shooting

Shooting is the ultimate test of accuracy and control. In this precision sport, athletes use focus and controlled breathing to reduce their heart hearts and improve stability and high performance. This ability to steady hand and mind to deliver a sequence of shots requires well-developed powers of concentration and emotional control. This sport is all about coordination, balance, control and precision. Click here to read an overview of the sport, ranging from its Paralympic Games history to explaining the competition style, here are three fact to know. 

 

Sport of the Week #8 - Sitting Volleyball

Sitting volleyball is a fast and exciting spectator sport, demanding excellent reactions, great upper body strength, stamina, balance, and tactical awareness. Sitting volleyball requires a smaller court (10m x 6m) and a lower net, but is played with the same ball as standing volleyball. It’s played in the best-of-five format, and the first to reach 25 points (with at least a 2-point lead) wins the game. Click here to read an overview of the sport, ranging from the sport origin to explaining why one team member wears a different color jersey, here are four fact to know.

 

Sport of the Week #9- Swimming

Swimming was one of the original Paralympic sports and has grown into the second-most popular in terms of TV viewers. The Paralympic pool measures the same length as the Olympic pool, at 50m in length and 25m wide. Swimming requires speed, strength and immense determination of its athletes. Click here to read an overview of the sport, ranging from the sport’s Paralympic Games history to the different types of starts, here are six fact to know. 

 

Sport of the Week #10 - Track

Track is a fascinating sport because it combines individual and team aspects of athletics into one sport. With track, the key to success is speed, strength, and endurance. .Click here to read an overview of the sport, ranging from the explaining the term athletics to the Paralympic Games history, here are a list of four facts to know.

 

Sport of the Week #11 - Wheelchair Basketball

The fast-paced and frenetic sport, requires hand-eye coordination and stamina. In the 60 years since its debut, wheelchair basketball is a staple sport to watch during the Paralympic Games. Click here to read an overview of the sport, ranging from the explaining the sport's origin to the competition style, here are a list of four facts to know.

 

Navy Wounded Warrior hosted the 2021 Navy Team Trials virtually, March 22-May 14, 2021. Athletes, including active duty and veteran Sailors and Coast Guardsmen, from across the country competed for a place on Team Navy 2021. The competitors went head-to-head in  archery, cycling, field, golf, indoor rowing, powerlifting, shooting (precision air sports), sitting volleyball, swimming, track, wheelchair basketball and wheelchair rugby.

The Trials are part of the adaptive sports and recreation program designed to promote the mental and physica well-being of the wounded, ill and injured service members who participate.

The Paralympic-style competitive event showcases the resiliency of wounded warriors and highlights the effectiveness of adaptive sports as part of their recovery. It also highlights the impact the Navy Wounded Warrior program has in helping with the restorative care of wounded warriors enrolled in the program.

The Trials are also a test of the athletes’ resiliency, overall strength and endurance. For many, participation represents another milestone along their path to recovery, and an opportunity to meet other wounded warriors who face similar challenges.

Navy Wounded Warrior is proud to announce Team Navy for the 2021 Warrior Games. Team Navy is comprised of 45 primary and one alternate athletes, including a combination of active duty and veteran Sailors and Coast Guardsmen. 

 

 

Click here to meet the Team Navy for the 2021 Warrior Games.