MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

First Woman in Military History Completes Grueling Army Ranger Competition

The West Point graduate achieved a historical feat just as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth tries to push women out of combat.

A West Point graduate became the first woman to ever complete the three-day Best Ranger Competition. First Lt. Gabrielle White, 25, was the only woman among 103 men to compete in the grueling marathon, which took place between April 11 to 13 in Georgia. White and her teammate, Captain Seth Deltenre, placed 14th overall, with only 16 teams out of the original 52 pairs making it through to the end of the competition. White’s historic act comes at a time when the administration is trying to push women out of the military. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said on the Shawn Ryan Show in November that “straight up,” women should not be in combat roles. “It hasn’t made us more effective, hasn’t made us more lethal, has made fighting more complicated,” he said. In 2022, White graduated from Ranger school, which only lifted its ban against women in 2015. Back in March, Hegseth released a memo ordering the military to examine any changes in fitness standards in the army since 2015, and “why those standards changed and the impact of those changes.” The army posted about the competition on social media, but has not yet publicly recognized White for her accomplishment. The marathon White participated in consisted of physical tests, land navigation, helicopter missions, and weapon qualification.