Georgia wins gold at Marine Paralympic Games

Georgian soldiers wounded in battle have excelled on the sporting arena and won gold, silver and bronze medals at the annual Marine Corps Trials.

The international competition pitted ill, wounded or injured troops against each other in eight sports, ranging from track and field to swimming, archery and cycling.

Several hundred soldiers took part in the paralympic competition, including 13 from Georgia, which was held at Camp Pendleton in San Diego, in America.

Georgian military servicemen excelled in the shooting competition and gained the top three positions.

Sergeant Bakhva Darsalia won a gold medal among 244 participants in the "light injury” category. Junior Sergeant Iakob Zosiashvili was awarded the silver medal and First Class Private Giorgi Kochuashvili received the bronze medal.

Georgian athletes also participated in archery, 10 km hand cycling, 30 km cycling races, and running and swimming events.

The 13 Georgian representatives wounded in combat activities (either serving in missions protecting the country’s territorial integrity or an ISAF international mission) were involved in the paralympics-style competition.

In total, 350 athletes participated in the Trials, including 200 active-duty Marines, 50 veterans and 100 wounded service members from international allied forces, including Georgia, Australia, Canada, Colombia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

Wounded Georgian servicemen compete in the shooting competition at the 2014 Marine Corps Trials at Camp Pendleton. Photo by mod.gov.ge

The two-week competition will end on March 14. At this time the country with the highest points will be named the winning country.

The Trials help determine who will represent the US Marine Corps at the military paralympics, known as the Warrior Games, due to be held at the US Olympic Training Center and the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs later this year.