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VFMC hosts German Armed Forces Proficiency Badge competition
Mar 03, 2026
Valley Forge Military College’s ROTC Department hosted a competition for the German Armed Forces Proficiency Badge (GAFPB) on Friday, February 27 and Saturday, February 28.
In the United States Military, the German Armed Forces Proficiency Badge is one of the few approved foreign awards, and it is one of the most sought after awards to achieve.
Cadets from VFMC, Lehigh, Princeton and members of the PA National Guard participated in the competition. Fourteen VFMC Early Commissioning Program Cadets earned the badge, including Benjamin Cournoyer and Parker Walls (Eastern University), who achieved the Gold Standard.
The GAFPB competition included four competitions: Basic Fitness Test, Swim Test, Pistol Shoot and Ruck March.
The Basic Fitness Test consisted of an 11×10 sprint, flexed arm hang and finished with a 1,00-meter run. For the swim test, competitors had to finish a 100-meter swim in under four minutes, immediately followed by treading water while the competitor removed their uniform and tossed it out of the pool.
In the Pistol Shoot, competitors engaged targets at 5, 10, and 15 meters with 10 total rounds. A minimum of 7 hits was required for Bronze, 8 for Silver, and 9 hits (to include at least one of the two shots fired into A Zone, or the head of the silhouette) for Gold.
Competitors still in competition for a badge reported Saturday morning to begin the ruck. Bronze required completion of 3.8 miles within 1 hour, Silver required completion of 5.6 miles in under 1.5 hours, and Gold required completion of 7.5 miles in under two hours.
VFMC Badge Winners
Gold Star
Benjamin Cournoyer
Parker Walls
Silver Star
Ethan Adams
Samuel Marianetti
Daniel Schiele
Jacob Smith
Kevin Tran
Bronze Star
Austin Bruley
Izrael Diaz
Sal Fonseca
Liam Samples
Mason Stephens
Michael Witkowski
Cameron Young
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