by Rick Burke, Navy Office of Community Outreach Public
Affairs
CHICAGO
– The 2017 Department of Defense Warrior Games kicked off June 30th with competitions over the
weekend in shooting, sitting volleyball, wheelchair basketball, and track.
Retired Navy Petty Officer 2rd Class Joseph Engfer, a Ranchester, Wyoming native, is a
multisport athlete competing in archery, shooting, track and field, and
wheelchair basketball.
On
July 3, Engfer competed in archery on has had a very successful opening weekend
by winning three medals in track, qualifying for the medal round in the 10
meter air rifle, standing and prone, scheduled for July 8 and advancing to the
medal round as a member of Team Navy’s basketball team.
In
track, Engfer won a gold in the 100 meters, another gold medal as a member of
the 4 x 100 meters relay team and picked up silver in the 800 meters.
Engfer
and the rest of “Team Navy” join more than 250 seriously wounded, ill and
injured service members and veterans at the Department of Defense Warrior
Games, which end July 8.
Navy athletes are competing against competitors from the Army,
Marine Corps, Air Force, Special Operations Command, Australian Defense Force
and the United Kingdom Armed Forces in cycling, track and field, shooting,
swimming, archery, sitting volleyball and wheelchair basketball.
The Navy honors the sacrifices of wounded warriors by providing
them top-notch non-medical support through Navy Wounded Warrior (NWW) – Safe
Harbor. All enrollees in NWW are encouraged to make athletics a key component
of their recovery efforts. By promoting wounded warrior participation in
competitions like the Warrior Games, NWW helps enrollees heal through adaptive
sports.
These games provide an opportunity for athletes to grow
physically, mentally and spiritually from the sportsmanship and camaraderie
gained by representing their respective service teams in a friendly and spirited
competition. It is an opportunity for athletes to showcase their enduring
warrior spirit in the presence of their families and grateful nation.
- - Lt.
Jesus Uranga, Team Navy Public Affairs
**See links below for additional photos**
https://www.flickr.com/photos/navyoutreach/34899487124/in/dateposted-public/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/navyoutreach/35353056980/in/dateposted-public/
**See links below for additional photos**
https://www.flickr.com/photos/navyoutreach/34899487124/in/dateposted-public/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/navyoutreach/35353056980/in/dateposted-public/
For more information about the 2017 DoD Warrior Games, please
visit http://www.dodwarriorgames.com/.