CAMP SMITH TRAINING SITE, N.Y. — Two soldiers from the Swedish Armed Forces competed with New York Army National Guard troops during the 2025 Best Warrior Competition last week.
Swedish Cpl. Simon Drie Runnander and Pvt. Jesper Andersson participated in the multi-day event that tested Soldiers’ technical skills, physical readiness and ability to perform under pressure. The competition was held April 7-11 at the Camp Smith Training Site near Peekskill, New York.
Their visit was part of the Department of Defense National Guard State Partnership Program. The New York National Guard and Sweden established a partnership in 2024.
Events throughout the week covered a range of tasks, including simulated weapons handling, patrol base operations, tactical communications and casualty care.
Participants also appeared before a dress uniform board and competed in a live-fire range round-robin using M4 carbines and M9 pistols.
Drie Runnander and Andersson are members of the Swedish Army’s 1st Infantry Brigade.
Andersson has served in the Swedish Army for four years as a rifleman and has been trained as a Carl Gustaf anti-tank weapon specialist. He has competed in the Swedish Army’s tactical service shooting competition.
Drie Runnander is a forward observer who has been in the Swedish Army for seven years. He has competed in the Swedish military’s version of the U.S. Army Best Warrior event.
The Swedish soldiers said the experience added to their professional development and contributed to ongoing cooperation between the two forces.
“This has been a good chance for us to train in a different setting,” Drie Runnander said. “We’ve picked up new techniques and learned more about how the U.S. military prepares its Soldiers.”
“This has been one of the toughest training experiences I’ve ever done, but also one of the most rewarding,” Drie Runnander said. “Working side by side with American Soldiers pushed me outside my comfort zone. I’ve learned a lot that I’ll take back to Sweden.”
In addition to core competition events, participants also had the opportunity to complete the German Armed Forces Proficiency Badge requirements that included a 100-meter swim in uniform, a 1,000-meter sprint, pistol qualification, a flexed arm hang, and a 12-mile ruck march while carrying a full combat load.
Andersson said the event offered more than physical challenges.
“Being here gives us a better understanding of how American Soldiers train and work together,” he said. “It also allows us to share how we operate in Sweden.”
Andersson also said that while Soldiers competed against each other, he appreciated the comradery.
“It feels like we are all a team. We all help each other, we all learn from each other,” he said.
“I have really enjoyed it. All of the American Soldiers and officers have been really, really nice,” he said.
“The biggest difference between the American military and Swedish is just the scale,” Andersson said. “There are so many people, so it is a little bit overwhelming, but it is really cool.”
New York’s partnership with Sweden is one of more than 100 similar relationships fostered globally through the State Partnership Program, which pairs U.S. National Guard units with military forces in partner nations to strengthen interoperability and regional cooperation.
Since the agreement began, New York Guard personnel and Swedish military representatives have conducted staff talks and small-unit engagements, with plans for more bilateral exchanges in the future. New York also has State Partnership Program relationships with South Africa and Brazil.
The Best Warrior Competition provides a platform for identifying top-performing Soldiers and enhancing coordination and trust between allied forces.
Inviting the Swedish Army to send competitors to the Best Warrior event creates networking and teamwork opportunities, said Lt. Col. Melanie Padilla, the New York National Guard’s State Partnership Program director. Both parties benefit by exchanging knowledge and building familiarity with different training methods and standards, she said.
Hosting the Swedish soldiers at the competition was essential to the partnership, New York Army National Guard Command Sgt. Major Edwin Garris said.
“We want to inspire them to return and say, ‘Hey, we need to train with these elements. We need to come to the U.S. to come here and for us to go there,’” Garris said.
“We want to continue collaborating and building these bridges between our countries as true allies,” Garris said.