Army Guardsmen Compete at Winter Games

Three Army National Guard Soldiers are set full on the 2026 Winter Olympics now underway in Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

Vermont Army Guard Staff Sgt. Deedra Irwin (pictured, center in backside row), Utah Army Guard Sgt. Ben Loomis (pictured, top-left in prime row) and New Hampshire Army Guard Spc. Sean Doherty (pictured, second-from-right in backside row) are all on orders as a part of the U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program.

WCAP permits top-ranked Soldier-athletes to coach and carry out on the worldwide stage whereas additionally serving their nation within the navy.

Eleven coaches and athletes with WCAP are on the Winter Games.  

Irwin and Doherty competed within the biathlon, which merges cross-country snowboarding and rifle marksmanship, whereas Loomis is within the Nordic mixed, which incorporates cross-country snowboarding and ski leaping.   

Irwin positioned seventh — the best U.S. end in biathlon historical past — within the ladies’s 15-kilometer particular person biathlon on the 2022 Beijing Olympics. She completed in 44 minutes, 44.1 seconds and hit 19 of 20 targets. Biathletes incur a penalty for each missed goal. Either further time is added or they have to ski a penalty loop for every miss. 

She has an opportunity to compete in as many as six occasions — the combined relay, particular person, dash, pursuit, ladies’s relay and mass begin. 

“If you look at my last Olympics, I was unranked, and if I had shot 20 of 20, I would have medaled,” Irwin stated. 

Irwin, whose navy occupation specialty is 42A, human useful resource specialist, enlisted in 2019 and competed for the National Guard Biathlon Team within the 2022 Games earlier than becoming a member of WCAP in 2023. 

While she speaks fondly about her time with the National Guard Biathlon Team, the consistency of help from WCAP has been a difference-maker in her athletic and navy profession.

“With WCAP, I have full-time orders, full-time benefits and direct access to resources such as nutritional support,” Irwin stated. “Being both a platoon sergeant and an athlete have pushed me to learn a lot, from managing my time, mentoring teammates, handling temporary-duty paperwork and helping athletes travel internationally.” 

Doherty joins an elite membership by qualifying for his fourth Olympic staff. He competed within the 2014 Sochi Olympics as an 18-year-old and enlisted in in 2018, the place he’s a 12W, carpentry and masonry specialist. 

Now 30, he stated he nonetheless tries to maintain that 18-year-old mindset.

“That attitude was powerful and fun, and I try to keep some of that alive,” stated Doherty, who joined WCAP after the 2022 Beijing Games. “I enjoy talking with younger teammates and sharing experiences.”

Doherty additionally might compete in six occasions.

Loomis is in his third Olympics, enlisted in 2019 with the only intention of becoming a member of WCAP, however his perspective and need to serve has modified considerably.

“It has been such as positive experience — the National Guard, WCAP and the Army as a whole,” stated Loomis, a motor transport operator. “Now I want to stay in after my athletic career, maybe even for a full career. My reasons for joining and my reasons for staying are completely different now.”

He stated his athletic coaching carries over to his navy duties.

“Being an athlete and a Soldier go hand in hand,” Loomis stated. “What I’ve discovered within the navy has helped my athletic profession, and my athletic background has helped me as a Soldier. 

“WCAP provides incredible resources — nutrition, mental health support, travel funding and a full team behind us. These sports can be financially difficult, so WCAP removes a lot of that burden and allows me to focus on competing while continuing my military career.”

—By Steve Warns, 
U.S. Army IMCOM Public and Congressional Affairs