This Ranger and adaptive athlete recaptured the military bond at the Warrior Games

Logan Nye
Apr 2, 2018 9:41 AM PDT
1 minute read
Fitness photo

SUMMARY

Army veteran Sgt. 1st Class Howard “Howie” Sanborn was an all-star on active duty. He was an Airborne Ranger infantryman who conducted long-range surveillance for the XVII Airborne Corps before doing five years as a member of the U.S. Army’s pr…

Army veteran Sgt. 1st Class Howard "Howie" Sanborn was an all-star on active duty. He was an Airborne Ranger infantryman who conducted long-range surveillance for the XVII Airborne Corps before doing five years as a member of the U.S. Army's premier high-altitude demonstration team, the Golden Knights.


As a Golden Knight, it was Howie's job to share his experiences in the Army with civilians and act as a brand ambassador. Now, he uses a wheelchair and is off active duty, but he still spreads the Army message far and wide as an adaptive athlete.

"For me," Howie said, "the Warrior Games are an amazing opportunity to get back with my team. I'm part of Team SOCOM. Once you leave the military and you're retired or you just get out, you don't necessarily lose that sense of camaraderie but you're kind of separate from your buddies. So when you get to do events like this together or training events together, it's a chance to rub shoulders with guys who've been through the same thing you've been through."

At the 2016 Warrior Games, Howie competed in his racing chair in track events, taking home three gold medals for Men's 1500 Run 2.0, Men's 800 Meter Run 3.0, and Men's 400 Meter Dash 3.0, as well as one silver medal in Men's 200 Meter Dash 2.0.

Military veterans and adaptive athletes prepare for the start of the 2016 Warrior Games. Sgt. 1st Class Howard Sanborn is in the grey shirt in the foreground. (Photo: WATM)

Author's Note: The events are broken down by each athlete's functional ability. The 2.0 and 3.0 notations in the event titles refer to Howie and his competitors' functional ratings.

Outside of the Warrior Games, Howe competes on the Parathriathlon Team for the U.S.

As an alumni of the Golden Knights and an adaptive athlete, Howie was the obvious choice for narrator during the Golden Knight demonstration in the opening ceremonies.

A US Army Golden Knight parachutes into the 2016 Warrior Games. (Photo: WATM)

As part of his duties in the opening ceremony, Howie presented a special award to Gen. Frederick M. Franks. Franks was pioneer in the wounded warrior community, fighting his way back into combat units after losing his left leg below the knee.

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