LITTLE FALLS, Minn. – Twenty-seven Minnesota Guard members, along with Canadian and Croatian soldiers, tested their skills April 15-18 during harsh weather conditions in the 2026 Minnesota Best Warrior Competition.
The demanding competition was held at Camp Ripley Training Center on a day that began with unusually warm temperatures, but sunshine turned to rain within hours and the ground turned to mud before snowflakes fell. In a three-day period, highs dropped from 70 degrees to 30 degrees.
“This isn’t just a competition,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Jason Rost, Minnesota’s command senior enlisted leader. “It’s a crucible.”
Minnesota and Croatia have been paired in the Department of War National Guard Bureau State Partnership Program since 1996.
For more than 72 hours, competitors traversed more than 23 miles and executed 27 events designed to replicate real-world combat scenarios. From live demolitions and wet gap crossings to night land navigation and non-standard live fire ranges, participants fired more than 24,000 rounds across multiple weapons systems. During the Valor Ruck, competitors marched more than 12 miles, stopping at stations modeled after real-world acts of valor.
“As the old proverb goes, iron sharpens iron,” Rost said. “The friction of this competition has filed away the rust, leaving only the hardened steel beneath.”
By the end of the first day, Sgt. Victoria Woolford’s feet began to blister.
“I was really pushing myself to the limit, even when I felt like I was already past my limit,” said Woolford, from St. Francis, Minnesota, who serves as a small arms/towed artillery repairer with the 434th Support Maintenance Company, 347th Regional Support Group. “With the ruck marching especially, there was a lot of discomfort, but I wanted to make sure I completed what I started and be a good example for my younger siblings.”
For Army Sgt. Abigail Meyers, from Bloomington, Minnesota, who serves as a human resources specialist with Detachment 1, Joint Force Headquarters, the defining moment came on the final day of the competition during the wet gap crossing.
“I remember the initial shock of getting into the river,” said Meyers, as snow fell around her. “The gasp of air that leaves your body, there’s really no amount of mental preparation you can do. You just have to get in and keep moving.”
With soaked equipment and freezing temperatures, even simple tasks became difficult.
“When we got out of the water, we had to fire 30 rounds at a target,” Meyers said. “I remember my gloves being sopping wet as I tried to open my fingers enough to fire.”
She was later treated for hypothermia, but what mattered to her was that she didn’t give up.
“I don’t like to be a quitter,” she said. “By that point, I had already made it so far, and there was no way I was going to back out of this.”
The Minnesota National Guard redesigned the Best Warrior Competition after 2024, shifting from task-based testing to mission-based scenarios. Instead of isolated events, competitors were placed in situations that mirrored real-world operations that forced them to adapt, solve problems and perform under pressure.
“This really rekindled my Soldier mindset,” said Pfc. Payton Gessford, from Alexandria, Minnesota, who serves as an aviation operations specialist with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 34th Combat Aviation Brigade. “It gave me the motivation to keep progressing in my military career and give everything my best.”
Army Staff Sgt. John Parsons, from Dawson, Minnesota, who serves as a cannon crewmember with the 1st Battalion, 175th Regional Training Institute, and Spc. Thomas Ogdahl, from Cambridge, Minnesota, who serves as an infantry Soldier with C Company, 1st Battalion, 194th Armor Regiment, were named the 2026 Minnesota National Guard noncommissioned officer and Soldier of the Year.
“This is a test of grit and skill,” Ogdahl said. “Any competition is a good evaluation to figure out your strengths and shortcomings and then develop those things and become a better leader.”
Army Staff Sgt. Derek Kotzer, from Lino Lakes, Minnesota, who serves as a cavalry scout with Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 94th Cavalry Regiment and Spc. Hunter Goetsch, from Albertville, Minnesota, who serves as a joint fire support specialist with Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment, were runners-up for noncommissioned officer and Soldier of the Year.
In the international category, Croatian Army Pvt. Filip Palijan, from Vukovar, Croatia, who serves as an explosive ordnance technician with the Military Intelligence Company, was recognized as the runner-up, while Canadian Sgt. Ryan Griffiths, from Bragg Creek, Alberta, Canada, who serves as an infantry soldier with the 38th Canadian Brigade Group’s Royal Regina Rifles, took the 2026 Best International competitor title.
Minnesota’s winners will move on to compete against the best Soldiers and noncommissioned officers from across the Midwest at the Region IV Best Warrior Competition, hosted this year by the Michigan National Guard at Fort Custer, Mich., April 29-May 3.
“I’m excited to represent the state and go there and do my best just like this,” Parsons said.