Live at 6 | ROTC Fitness Challenge

By Nicole DeMentri SYRACUSE, N.Y. (CitrusTV) – The Dome was split in half Tuesday evening with Men’s Basketball shooting hoops on the court and the ROTC Fitness Challenge running laps around the turf.  

Around 70 Junior ROTC Cadets from Central New York programs, including Mexico Academy and Central District Marine Corps JROTC, Western Maritime Buffalo Naval JROTC, Utica’s Proctor Naval JROTC and Carthage Army JROTC left school early to come to the Hill for an evening filled with more than just a competition.  

The Syracuse University Army Reserve Officer Training Corps Cadets ran the entire event after being approach by area leaders in the fall asking to host the Fitness Challenge.

Lieutenant Colonel Jason Warner is a professor of military science and a department chair.

“They came to us and we just ran with it,” he said.

Before the first annual physical competition started, Syracuse Admission counselors were on hand to speak with the students about life after high school.  Although heavily army based, the admissions counselors also spoke about how Junior Cadets can continue to participate in their respective ROTC programs as they head to college.  The counselors also took time to focus on how the Juniors in the bleachers could apply to both SU and the Army ROTC program.

“We’re just introducing them to what they can potentially do beyond high school whether it’s in the military or at college,” Lt. Colonel Warner shared.

After a quick safety chat, the students headed down onto the field where they stretched and then broke up into unique teams.  They were challenged to work together in order to complete 150 repetitions of a series of exercises deemed the “Fitness Challenge.”

“This event hopefully will be a good experience for the Cadets and beneficial since they get to see what life can be like once they graduate high school,” SU Army ROTC Cadet Eleanor Jurczak said.  

JROTC Cadets were also tasked with completing burpees, pushups, sit-ups, laps around the Dome and finished the evening with the dead man carry—where teams need to carry a 105lb dummy on a stretcher across the field.  

Awards were given in various categories at the end of the Challenge with team twelve coming out victorious.

The night was a success for all of the cadets and Lt. Colonel Warner hopes this becomes an annual event to bring people together.