Soldiers earn Norwegian swim badge through water survival fitness testing
Sgt. 1st Class Jeremy Calvin, a recruiter with U.S. Army Recruiting Conway, Arkansas, drove to Fort Leonard Wood to administer the test.
“Fitness goes hand in hand with military service. Being able to test ourselves mentally and physically in a controlled garrison environment can build confidence in capabilities when new challenges appear,” Calvin said.
The Store Havhesten, or The Great Sea Horse, also known as the Norwegian Swimming Federation Swimmer Badge, is a swimming proficiency award established by the Norwegian Swimming Federation to recognize achievement in swimming, endurance and lifesaving.
The badge challenges participants across a broad range of aquatic skills, including distance swimming, backstroke, swimming in clothing, underwater swimming, diving, timed freestyle swimming and lifesaving.
According to Calvin, there is no greater test of survival than swimming under the weight of a waterlogged uniform.
“The 500-meter clothed swim is the most challenging just due to the extra drag created by the clothes,” Calvin said.
The Great Sea Horse is awarded in three grades — bronze, silver and gold — with progressively higher performance requirements.
“All Soldiers passed the requirement to earn the swim badge in bronze, which is the highest you can get your first year,” Calvin said.
One of the Soldiers, Capt. Nicolas Tures, a Military Police Captains Career Course student, said he swam competitively in high school, and he wanted to prove that his competitive edge hadn't dulled.
“I wanted to test myself and see if I could still perform,” Tures said. “One of my past leaders told me, ‘If you stay ready, you don’t have to get ready.’ I think this is especially true of physical fitness in the Army, where you may be required to perform with little or no warning.”
The 1000-meter freestyle was a breeze for Tures, but he said the sculling portion of the test proved to be a brutal wake-up call, demanding a relentless, high-precision forearm sweep.
“Backward sculling was the most challenging. The technique was new to me, and it was difficult to create momentum,” Tures said.
Maj. Jonathan Chang, officer in charge of the General Leonard Wood Community Hospital’s Patient Centered Medical Home, also earned a bronze badge.
“Physical fitness is vital aspect of personal readiness and leadership,” Chang said. “We should continually strive to challenge ourselves and maintain high standards of fitness.”
The lifesaving drill was supposed to be stressful, but Chang shut it down with ease, letting his professional training turn the survival test into light work. He said having the lifesaving assessments integrated into the Norwegian aquatic standards was a welcome, practical test of true readiness.
“The CPR event was the easiest for me as I am already basic life support qualified,” he said. “I appreciate the lifesaving assessment because it is a fundamental skill for both novice and experienced swimmers in the event of an emergency.”
Calvin said while the badge is not authorized for Soldiers to wear, under the Norwegian Skill Badge Program the Norwegian Armed Forces Medal for Field Sports is authorized for wear and requires successful completion of three field sportsskill badge assessments, at least one of which must be a military skill event — Norwegian Foot March Badge, Norwegian Ski Badge, Norwegian Infantry Badge, Norwegian Military Field Sports Badge or Norwegian Pentathlon Badge.
According to Sgt. 1st Class Loretta Streichert, operations sergeant with the U.S. Army Military Police School, Fort Leonard Wood service members will have the opportunity to earn the Norwegian Foot March Badge Nov. 10, 2026, at an event hosted by the 58th Transportation Battalion and 14th Military Police Brigade.
Tures said he’s already gearing up for the challenge, eager for the chance to earn another badge.
“I definitely want to participate,” Tures said.
Streichert said the 18.6-mile nighttime foot march is to be done with a 24.25-pound ruck sack, and military must be in uniform to participate. Civilian foot march participants are required to wear boots and long pants.
Registration is open until Oct. 30 via this [link](https://forms.osi.apps.mil/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=D9fm-kuVEUiStgUw1vhMQ2tU-CS1l_FGjfUlNgrBW1hURjNWOE01RDFSQ0w1UDRXVjNOMjg2TlJCVy4u&origin=QRCode). Check-in is set for 8 to 8:45 p.m., Nov. 10, 2026, at Abrams Theater.
For more information about the upcoming Norwegian Foot March, email [kyle.kester.mil@army.mil](mailto:kyle.kester.mil@army.mil) or [loretta.a.streichert.mil@army.mil](mailto:loretta.a.streichert.mil@army.mil).
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
