MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- Marines aboard Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni took home the Lloyd Trophy after defeating 16 teams at the Far East Division Matches at Marine Corps Base Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan, Jan. 11-22.
What the Marines from Marine Aircraft Group 12 didn’t know was they were going to make history.
“Quite literally, we fired our way into Marine Corps history,” said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Christopher Joy, chemical biological radiological nuclear officer for MAG-12.
This year, MCAS Iwakuni sent Marines from MAG-12, Combat Logistics Company 36, Marine All Weather Fighter Attack Squadron 242 and Marine Wing Support Squadron 171, but the true underdogs were the MAG-12 Marines, who took first place as the overall team winners while all being tyros.
A tyro is any Marine or competitor who has never fired in actual competition. Every Marine is a rifleman first.
That is a phrase every Marine is taught from the first day of recruit training until his final day in the Marine Corps.
The Far East Division Matches enhance every competitor’s skills through a two-week training course and competition. The first few days were classroom instruction.
The Marines hit the ranges Jan. 16-17 for pre-qualification. MAG-12 sent eight Marines to the competition. Of those eight, none had ever fired a rifle or pistol in competition.
“We all went down there as a bunch of Marines,” said Joy. “All we really knew how to do was pull the trigger.”
After about two weeks of classroom instruction and firing on the ranges, MAG-12 Marines went from being just Marines to serious competitors.
“We were all tyros going down there,” said Joy. “To win was just phenomenal.”
The annual competition is broken up into four separate competitions. The four competitions are the individual M-9 pistol, M-16A2 rifle and team competitions on both weapons.
The Marines competed in the individual competitions Jan. 18- 19, then MAG-12 took its four best shooters and a fifth as coach for the team competition Jan. 20.
MAG-12 Marines were able to bring home nine medals from the competition as well as the illustrious Lloyd Trophy, which were presented at the theater at Camp Hansen Jan. 22.
“I’m just happy the Marines themselves had the initiative, desire and drive to do it,” said Col. Stephen G. Nitzschke, MAG- 12 commanding officer.
2010 marked the first year the Lloyd Trophy has left Okinawa, as well as the first time in history that an all-tyro team has won the trophy.
“This is the very first time a unit from Iwakuni has ever won this trophy,” said Joy. “We are the first wing unit to win since 1986.”
It is a true underdog story. Marines from Iwakuni were able to do as well as they did even with no range here to practice on. That shows the determination the Iwakuni competitors brought to the competition.
“They did a fantastic job,” said Nitzschke. “I’m very proud of them. The entire MAG-12 should be proud of them.”