Tripler Army Medical Center  –   Capt. Pablo Delis, an OB/GYN resident physician at Tripler Army Medical Center, was named winner of the organization’s Best Leader Completion during a Jan. 30 awards ceremony at the hospital’s Kyser Auditorium.

Delis, along with Sgt. Drew Smoker, Cpl. Peyton Mitchell, Spc. Rhian Mora, Spc. Yovani Catalan, and Sgt. 1st Class Skysen Valdrez will go on to compete at the Medical Readiness Command, Pacific level later this year.

U.S. Army Soldiers from TAMC and the Desmond T. Doss Health Clinic competed for the title of Best Leader during a four-day event, running Jan. 21-24 at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii. Events included an expert physical fitness assessment, a stress shoot, warrior task and battle drills, a ruck march, combat water survival training, land navigation, a 3.5 mile obstacle course run, and a mystery event.

“This training is going to prepare all of us for what is to come, [whether] that is deploying and or just training environments,” explained Sgt. Luis Maldonado Jr., a BLC competitor and behavioral health specialist at TAMC. “I feel like that this competition will realistically help us with having a callous mind, being able to overcome obstacles and barriers.”

U.S. Army Soldiers from TAMC and DDHC designed the competition’s events to test the Soldiers’ physical and mental limits, while also creating a stronger bond amongst their peers. In addition to mastering medical training, Combat Medics must be able to seamlessly integrate into combat units throughout the Army.

That mental toughness was what motivated all the Soldiers to shine on the physical endurance challenges.

Catalan, a DDHC optometry tech, said he prepped for the event by seeking advice from fellow Soldiers.

“Talking to people and see what helps them out, get their advice and give it a try,” Yovani said.  “Sometimes it works and sometimes it does not work. For me, I go from street lamp to street lamp during the ruck, I just keep on charging and pushing myself.”

Because the Soldiers spends their normal workdays focused on patient care, they all had to train for the event outside of duty hours.

“This training is important to me, physically I want to be able to prove to myself that I can do these tasks that they have tasked us with,” said Capt. Devin Thomas, physical therapy resident physician at DDHC. “I have had two Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) surgeries, so I am trying to bounce back and be able to not only do my clinical work but also be able to carry my load, whether that is rucking around and or doing medical evacuations. I want to be able to contribute equally.”

The Best Leader Competition promotes “Esprit De Corps” throughout the Army while recognizing Soldiers who demonstrate commitment to the Army values and embody the Warrior Ethos. The competition recognizes those Soldiers demonstrating mental and physical toughness, superb military bearing, communication skills, knowledge of various military subjects and the ability to perform a variety of Soldier skills.