For the first time in Army history, a female service member completed the grueling Best Ranger Competition.
First Lt. Gabrielle White, a 25-year-old West Point graduate, became the first female ranger ever to compete in the annual three-day, 30-event marathon that unfolded April 11 to 13 at Fort Benning in Georgia.
The events included helicopter missions, land navigation, weapon qualification and various physical tests.
White was the only woman on any of the 52 two-person teams that competed, with her team making it to the final events — even as other teams dropped out — and placing 14th. Overall, the competition included 103 men, and just one woman.
White was seen climbing ropes, slogging through mud, completing pull ups and swimming across water in the notoriously tasking challenges.
The marathon tests both physical and cognitive strength of competitors, with just about four hours to rest a day. By the final day, only 16 of the original 52 teams were still in the competition, and White and her partner, Captain Seth Deltenre, were among them.
White’s presence proves female challengers can compete in one of the military’s highest profile events for soldiers. She is both the first woman and the first African American woman to compete.
It’s a major milestone for the Army, especially at a time when the role of women in combat has come under scrutiny during the Trump administration.
White was already a trailblazer in her own right by becoming a ranger, graduating from Ranger school in 2022. Ranger school only opened to female soldiers in 2015. That same year, the military lifted its ban on women in combat roles under the Obama administration.
Before his confirmation, Trump’s Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, spoke out against women in combat.
“I’m straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles. It hasn’t made us more effective, hasn’t made us more lethal, has made fighting more complicated,” he said on the Shawn Ryan Show on November 7.
The Army tweeted about the competition but did not acknowledge White’s historic participation.
NBC News has asked Army leaders if they intend to recognize White.
An Army spokesperson responded with basic details of White’s biography, but no mention of whether she’ll be distinguished for her accomplishment.
White is an infantry officer in the Army, currently assigned to the Maneuver Captains Career Course, B Company, 3rd Battalion, 81st Armored Regiment, 199th Infantry Brigade, according to the Army.
She’s been awarded two Army Commendation Medals, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Ranger Tab, and Air Assault Badge.
