Army-Navy rivalry week kicks off with workout competition at Nationals Park

More than 100 athletes took the field at Nationals Park on Tuesday morning, braving a dreary fog to get a workout in. But they weren’t pitchers and hitters preparing for glory on the baseball diamond — they were soldiers and sailors engaging in some friendly competition ahead of the 125th Army-Navy football game.

The event, part of the Washington Nationals’ Base HIIT (high-intensity interval training) program, was one of a handful of appetizers for this weekend’s college football game at Northwest Stadium in Landover.

The trash talk started early for the service members on Tuesday. Originally, there were supposed to be an equal number of soldiers and sailors for the circuit-based competition around Nationals Park.

The Army brought its share, but the Navy only fielded seven competitors when the event began, causing the soldiers to ask what happened.

“Some of us had to work today,” one sailor chirped back.

There’s nothing like a sibling rivalry.

“We’re teammates for 364 days a year, but for one day, it’s Army vs. Navy,” Rear Adm. David Faehnle said. “It’s fantastic to come out on a Major League Baseball field, Army soldiers and Navy sailors working out together, showing our spirit and camaraderie.”

The Nationals have hosted the Base HIIT events five or six times per year since 2022, typically opening the workouts to any interested members of the military.

But with the Army-Navy game coming to Landover on Saturday, this workout was different. The team only invited representatives from the Army and the Navy and turned the exercises into competitions.

Eight circuit-based workouts littered the outfield and lower seating bowl with events ranging from push-up competitions to agility drills and pitching sessions.

“We looked at the unique assets we have,” said Greg McCarthy, the Nationals’ senior vice president of community and government engagement. “We’ve got steps. We have a bullpen. So, we tried to devise these stations as much as possible to reflect what our players do and take advantage of the ballpark.”

With short breaks between exercises, the service members exchanged fist bumps and took photos with the racing presidents and Screech, the Nationals’ eagle mascot.

“For some of them, they never would have thought they’d have this opportunity,” Maj. Gen. Trevor Bredenkamp said. “They get to come to a Major League ballpark to get treated and thanked for their service. It means a lot to the young soldiers who work day in, day out.”

The soldiers proved the general right. Between exercises, they caught invisible pop flies and fielded imaginary grounders. Some mimed throwing a laser from the outfield to catch a runner at home plate. The stadium, though empty, allowed them to dream.

Then, it was back to reality and the exercises at hand.

The workouts culminated in the “Wheel of Death,” a sudden-death event that had the most fit soldiers and sailors performing pushups to failure. After each repetition, they shuffled to the right before repeating the exercises. The last service member standing, or still in the forward-leaning rest position, would be declared the winner.

Naval reinforcements arrived as the final exercise wrapped up, but their fresh arms couldn’t drag their compatriots to victory.

The Army, led by Capt. Tamera Caine, came out on top, earning temporary bragging rights ahead of Saturday’s game.

It might not be the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy, but soldiers still rejoiced as Nationals staffers handed them some smaller hardware on Tuesday morning, the inaugural Army-Navy Base HIIT Trophy.

“When I came here, I wasn’t really trying to compete with anyone. I didn’t know we were going to get a trophy,” Caine said. “But when I got into the stadium, that boosted my morale. I loved it.”

Service members from both branches retreated to the center-field brew house after the workout to exchange challenge coins and break bread. The Wheel of Death works up an appetite.

“That was nothing but chest, upper body, shoulders. I wasn’t ready,” Caine said. “But then I looked up, and I was the last person standing. It’s over the top; I’m just really grateful.”