Panama City, Florida. (June 13, 2025): America’s armed forces are going for the gold. In this photo by Airman 1st Class Zeeshan Naeem, Second Lieutenant Braeden Holcombe, a 325th Civil Engineer Squadron engineering project programmer, tackles the hurdles while preparing for Olympic qualifying. Holcombe is a member of the World Class Athlete Program (WCAP), a Department of the Air Force initiative that allows active-duty Airmen and Guardians to train and compete at the highest levels of international sports while continuing to serve.

The WCAP is a three-year program to compete in U.S. Armed Forces events, the Conseil International du Sport Militaire (Military World Games), and the Olympic Games. The program was established in 1995 to continue the legacy of Tuskegee Airman Malvin G. Whitfield. Whitfield, a Korean War tail gunner, became the first active-duty American serviceman to win Olympic gold in 1952 in Helsinki. “Marvelous Mal” Whitfield is said to have trained for the ’52 Games by running on and off an airfield between bombing missions.

The modern WCAP was first established by the Army in 1955, and the program was expanded to allow any Armed Forces member an opportunity to perform at the international level while maintaining their military career. Athletes train for competition in the modern pentathlon, shooting, boxing, racewalking, fencing, wrestling (Greco-Roman and freestyle), track and field (10,000 meters/3,000-meter steeple chase) and water polo. 

Lieutenant Holcombe’s day job is managing Air Force construction projects, and he conducts his vigorous Olympic training after hours. He intends to compete in the decathlon, a brutal physical series of ten events that require strength, speed and endurance that includes sprints, jumps, throws, and distance. If successful, Holcombe will become an ambassador for the American military on the ultimate international stage.