DATE: February 14, 2019 4:25:14 PM CST

Registration underway for 2019 Best Sapper Competition

By Marti Yoshida
Public Affairs Office

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Feb. 14, 2019) — Applications for engineers wanting to compete in the 13th annual Lt. Gen. Robert B. Flowers Best Sapper Competition are now being accepted through March 8.

The date of the three-day competition, which takes place at Fort Leonard Wood, home of the U.S. Army Engineer Regiment, is April 8 through 10. Competitors will report on April 6.

Priority will be given to teams composed of two Sapper Leader Course graduates.

“The rank and Military Occupational Specialty of the applicants is immaterial,” said Capt. Timothy Smith, Sapper Training Company commander. “Teams that do not meet the criteria will be placed on an Order of Merit List.”

Up to 50 teams will start the 50-hour competition, where they will travel 50 miles while completing a variety of events that test their technical and tactical proficiency as Sapper leaders.

“I urge teams to come out and challenge themselves among the finest to see if they have what it take to be the next Best Sapper,” 1st Sgt. John Adkerson, Sapper Training Company first sergeant, said.

The Best Sapper Competition began in 2005 as a means for engineers to demonstrate their skills, and was renamed after the 50th Chief of Engineers in 2018.

For more information, visit the BSC website at https://home.army.mil/wood/index.php/units-tenants/USAES/Sapper/BSC, or email the Sapper Training Company at usarmy.leonardwood.engineer-schl.mbx.best-sapper@mail.mil.

The public will be able to follow the competition on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BestSapper, or by using #BestSapper on social media.

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Photo of the 2018 Best Sapper Competition awards ceremony on Gammon Field by Mike Curtis, Fort Leonard Wood Visual Information Center.

About Fort Leonard Wood
Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post more than 75 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains more than 82,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps and Air Force detachments on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.

More information about Fort Leonard Wood is at: https://home.army.mil/wood/index.php/about/mission.