Local Soldier Competes in Combatives Tournament

More than 60 Missouri National Guard soldiers competed in hand-to-hand combat Saturday at the St. Charles Family Arena.

The 2012 Missouri National Guard Combatives Tournament featured soldiers and airmen who have been trained in hand-to-hand self-defense.

“I didn’t do as well as I thought I would,” said an exhausted Staff Sgt. Matthew Renfro, of South County in a guard release. Renfro competed in the heavyweight class and is a medical readiness sergeant for the 70th Troop Command at .

“It takes a lot of endurance and strength to keep up in combatives,” he said, “but this is one of the best things that I’ve ever been involved in while in the National Guard.”

Points are awarded to the competitor who uses more techniques in taking people down. Each match lasts six minutes unless an athlete submits.

“The combatives program has been around since the early 1990s,” said Master Sgt. Richard J. Burns, a tournament organizer and first sergeant of the 1438th Engineer Company in Macon. “It was started by the Army Rangers and is now a requirement for all soldiers as a part of basic training. Under the standard rules there is no striking; it’s more grappling on the mat.”

Saturday’s winners will go on to the All Guard Combatives Tournament in Georgia March 16-19.