As U.S.airmen carry out combat operations in the war with Iran, a small group of service members is representing the Air Force in a different arena: elite international sports.Through the World Class Athlete Program, or WCAP, Air Force athletes can train full time while remaining on active duty.
Their assignment is to compete at the highest level, promote the service and attempt to qualify for the Olympic Games.When their athletic careers end, they return to conventional military roles.The program’s mission has taken on added weight since U.S.
Central Command launched Operation Epic Fury against Iran on Feb.28.
An April 6 CENTCOM fact sheet said American forces had struck more than 13,000 targets using bombers, fighters, tankers, surveillance aircraft, electronic-warfare platforms and airlifters.The conflict remained unresolved in August.TRUMP HONORS TWO RECORD-BREAKING ATHLETES AT US COAST GUARD ACADEMY GRADUATION CEREMONYAgainst that backdrop, Airman First Class Anita Alvarez, 2nd Lt.
Texas Tanner and 1st Lt.Wyatt Hendrickson are training toward the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Retired Air Force combat rescue officer Chad Senior offers an example of how an elite athlete’s experience can eventually translate into operational military service.A view of Anita Alvarez at Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.(Getty Images)Their circumstances are not identical.
Alvarez and Senior are Olympians, although Senior competed through the Army’s athlete program before joining the Air Force.Tanner and Hendrickson have not yet reached the Olympics, but both have won major national championships while serving.Alvarez entered the Air Force as an established Olympic medalist.
She had already competed in three Olympic Games and helped the United States win the artistic-swimming team silver medal in Paris in 2024.She entered Basic Military Training in November 2024 and graduated at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland in January 2025.According to the Air Force, ...