Rockaway Park National Guard Soldier Sgt. Ilya Titov is runner-up in Army National Guard nationwide Best Warrior Competition

LATHAM, NY (08/06/2018) New York Army National Guard Sgt. Ilya Titov, a resident of Rockaway Park, was the runner up in a nationwide competition to find the top Soldier in the New York Army National Guard.

Titov, a member of the 1st Battalion 69th Infantry, which is based at the Lexington Avenue Armory, was competing in the junior enlisted Soldier category in the Army National Guard's Best Warrior Competition.

He competed against five other Soldiers selected through a series of competitions held around the country. The grueling three-day event was held at Fort Indiantown Gap, near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania July 25-27.

Titov, an infantryman, joined the New York Army National Guard in 2013.

To make it to the Fort Indiantown Gap competition, Titov had to first be picked as the top Soldier in New York. After winning that competition he went on to win in the enlisted Soldier category in a competition of Soldiers from across the northeast.

Non-commissioned officers compete in a separate category. Titov was competing in the enlisted category because he was originally a specialist when he entered the competition.

The event tests the Soldiers' physical fitness, military knowledge, marksmanship, and command of military skills like donning a gas mask or treating a casualty.

The culmination of the event was 12-mile forced march across the historic battlefield at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The Soldiers carried a 35-pound packs and weapons through historic locations like Little Round Top, Devil's Den and Cemetery Ridge.

The winner of the National Guard enlisted Best Warrior competition , Spec. Bailey Ruff , a Soldier in the North Dakota Army National Guard, will go on to compete against winners of competitions held by the Army Reserve and the Active Army.

Along with the runners up award, Titov received a Pennsylvania National Guard Commendation Medal.