Illinois National Guard Soldiers Battle It out at All-Army Combatives

Team Places Fifth out of 54

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The Illinois Army National Guard Combatives Team took fifth place out of 54 teams

FORT BENNING, GA., (10/04/2010)(readMedia)-- Twelve Soldiers with the Illinois Army National Guard travelled to Fort Benning, Ga. with the goal of winning a title in their weight class at the All-Army Combatives Tournament Oct. 1 to 3.

There were 462 Active Duty, Army National Guard and Army Reserve Soldiers and 54 teams competing to prove they are the Army's best at hand-to-hand combat. Overall, the Illinois Army National Guard team placed fifth out of 57 teams nationwide. The three-day competition tested Soldier's skills in close-quarters combat.

On Oct. 3, Sgt. Aoutneil Magny of Dalton, with the 708th Medical Company based in North Riverside won third place in the middleweight class title after a three-day battle on the mats.

Magny won his final fight in the third round by bringing his opponent into submission. The North Riverside Soldier has been training since he was 13 years old when he started wrestling. When Magny was 18, he expanded his fighting skills by adding kick boxing. Now, Magny trains under Torres Martial Arts Academy in Hammond, Ind.

"I was really excited walking into the ring," said Magny before his final fight. "I was even more excited once I won. I really can't wait to teach other Soldiers combatives and show them it does work."

Second Lt. Ivan Iotchkolovsky of River Grove with A Company, 1st Battalion, 178th Infantry Regiment, took fourth place in the heavyweight division. Three other Soldiers also placed in their weight class; Sgt. Adam Therriault of Aurora, with A Company, 33rd Brigade Special Troops Battalion in Marseilles Training Center, placed eighth in Welter weight class, Staff Sgt. Nicolas Grant of Caseyville, with the 129th Regional Training Institute in Springfield, finished 12th in middleweight class and Maj. Jeffary Jiannoni of Petersburg, with the Joint Force Headquarters in Springfield placed 12th for cruiserweight class.

Fighters competed individually in brackets based on weight class while team points were awarded based on individual placement. The tournament was a modified double elimination and consisted of three rounds. The first round was standard rules, strictly ground fighting. The second round was intermediate rules which allowed open hand strikes to the head, punches to the body, knee strikes and kicks. The finals were advanced rules that allowed full contact; ground fighting, punches, kicks and knee strikes.