02nd April 2019 15:14:27 Hours
Teams of military cadets from Mexico, Venezuela, Brazil, Canada, El Salvador, United States, Guatemala, Honduras and Sri Lanka gathered in Mexico in order to participate in the "International Competition Chimaltlalli."
The Competition was conducted from 28th February to 8th March 2019 with an eye to develop and build up the skills and abilities of the participating personnel. Sri Lanka was invited to participate in the competition for the first time and we were the only Asian country. “The competition Chimaltlalli (the word Chimaltlalli derives from Nahuatl which in Spanish means “Battlefield”) which is conducted annually intends to strengthen the bonds of friendship among participating nations, especially among the Armed Forces.
Director General Training, Maj Gen W A Wanniarachchi WWV RWP RSP USP ndc psc witnessed the competition representing the Sri Lanka Army while the Senior Instructor, Maj Y S H N P Silva psc, S/Sgt Deshapriya L J P and following lady and gentleman officer cadets from the SLMA participated in the competition:
The squads that formed a part of the competition were integrated with nine cadets representing the military academies of each country, including a lady officer cadet performing the same activities as gentleman cadets.
The competition took place in three phases: recognition, setting and competition to qualify in both tactical training and physical capacity (the altitude of Mexico City influences directly the performance of teams) together with the development of leadership.
Team SLMA was awarded a special certificate in appreciation of their performance.