U.S.
GalleryMarines and airmen play ‘maneuver chess’ to train for the pressures of combat
Stars and Stripes
April 22, 2025
U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Uziel Pacheco-Pacheco, a student with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School, and a native of Phoenix, plans a chess move on a chessboard during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)
Chess for these Marines and airmen exercised not only the mind — but the muscles, too.
Trainees with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School, last week played maneuver chess — a physical training event combined with a chess game — to prepare for the realities of combat at Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C.
Maneuver chess is a “think-and-fight” drill where service members compete against each other to make strategic chess decisions while racing through a physically challenging obstacle course. It is designed to improve both physical fitness and cognitive skills and tries to simulate the pressures of being in combat.
The event requires service members to split into teams of 10 or more. Teams are assigned three ammo cans and one chessboard. Competitors take turns racing through five exercise stations on the circuit course that include ammo can pushups, ammo can squats, ammo can push-presses, ammo can lunges and ammo can burpees.
Once service members reach the end of the circuit course, they must make a move on the chessboard as quickly as they can, preferably before their opponents make their move. Each captured piece is worth an amount of points. The team with the highest number of points is the winner.
U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Cesar Espinoza-Alvarez, right, an instructor with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School, and a native of Eunice, N.M., motivates Cpl. Jesus Jimenez, left, a student with GSS, and a native of New York, during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S Marines and airmen with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School perform exercises with ammo cans during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)
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U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Hunter O’Hara, a student with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School, and a native of Philadelphia, leads a flutter-kick exercise during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Uziel Pacheco-Pacheco, a student with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School, and a native of Phoenix, moves a pawn on a chessboard during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Jesus Jimenez, front, a student with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School, and a native of N.Y., carries an ammo can during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Uziel Pacheco-Pacheco, a student with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School, and a native of Phoenix, performs pushups during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S. Marines and airmen with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School respond to a simulated threat during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Jalisa Gunter, a student with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School, and a native of West Columbia, South Carolina, crawls with an ammo can during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Justin Maddich, a student with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School, and a native of Rices Landing, Pa., moves a chess piece during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Cesar Espinoza-Alvarez, an instructor with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School, and a native of Eunice, N.M., performs one-handed pullups during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S Marines and airmen with Distribution Management Instruction Company, Ground Supply School pose for a group photo during a physical training event on Camp Gilbert H. Johnson, N.C., April 16, 2025. (James Bricker/U.S. Marine Corps)