© 2024
NPR for Northern Colorado
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Warrior Games Kick Off Today in Colorado Springs

U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Daniel Hathorne accepts the Ultimate Champion award at the Warrior Games at the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colo. May 14, 2010.
DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III
U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Daniel Hathorne accepts the Ultimate Champion award at the Warrior Games at the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colo. May 14, 2010.

More than 200 wounded, ill and injured service men and women are gathering in Colorado Springs this week for the Third Annual Warrior Games.

Wounded troops from all five branches of military service will be competing in sports like swimming, cycling, sitting volleyball and archery—seven overall. The idea is to celebrate the abilities of wounded service members through athletic competition.

Among the special guests at this week’s events will be First Lady Michelle Obama. She’s expected to attend the opening ceremony today and deliver remarks. Mrs. Obama will be leading the presidential delegation later this summer at the Olympic Games in London.

The event is sponsored by the U.S. Olympic Committee, with support from the Department of Defense and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The competitions run through Saturday.

For a full schedule of events, click here.

 

Related Content
  • Servicemen and women from across the country are at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado for the annual Warrior Games. Wounded, injured and ill veterans from all branches of the military compete in seven sports during the five-day event.
  • When soldiers sustain traumatic injuries, the psychological damage may be the hardest to repair. In Operation Proper Exit, veterans return to Iraq for a week -- including a visit to the place where they sustained the injuries that dramatically changed their lives.
  • An annual four-day bike ride organized by the Wounded Warrior Project is being held across the country this week. One Marine says the ride gives them back the camaraderie they had in the military. "You look back and you got guys missing legs, missing arms — it doesn't matter. We're just all riding together."