A detail from competition. : The UAE SWAT Challenge

The prestigious competition is organized annually and is growing in popularity, being a great opportunity to create cooperation between the special forces units globally, besides sports competition.

Operators from all over the world compete within the exceptional Dubai SWAT Training Facility at ranges that are designed to challenge the level of training of each individual, as well as teamwork and coordination of an entire team. Tactical situations that are to be completed during the five days of competition require application of knowledge and skills that operators apply in their jobs and tasks, along with fast and practical tactical reasoning, all of which top teams master meticulously (for example, how to put a gas mask on, as quickly as possible). Therefore, a good team needs to have top shooters, exceptional in handling a gun, submachine gun and a sniper rifle, deft and agile guys, in top shape. All of them need to be effective in tactical thinking, especially in rapid decision-making and improvisation.

A total of 55 teams participated in this year`s competition, the SAJ Team fourth time, and the Gendarmerie Team for the first time. The competition is very strong, not only because the teams are made of operators from the very best, most respected units all over the world, but because some of the teams train for the competition throughout the entire year. That is the case with teams from Chechnya, as well as with hosting teams. Also, many of the teams arrive to Dubai significantly before the competition kicks off, and thus, have more time to rest and adapt (for example, during the last few days of preparations the temperature in Serbia was about -5 °C, and around 35 degrees in Dubai). The SAJ operators participated in a slightly changed team, compared to the last year, and were preparing more intensively this year, thanks to the obstacle course that was built at the base of the unit in 2022. Unlike other teams, the SAJ operators do not have a privilege to devote their time only to competition training, because everyday tasks and jobs are imperative for them. The same goes for the team consisting of the Gendarmerie units operators, that carried out a part of preparations together with the colleagues from the Special Anti-Terrorist Unit.

A detail from competition. : The UAE SWAT Challenge

This year, on the first day of competition, the host threw a surprise — a use of a sniper specialist was added to the first stage, which was not the case in the previous years. According to the guys from the Gendarmerie Team, this was probably the biggest challenge for the team, and a situation in which our gendarmes showed great character occurred when the team, due to a mistake of the host, was not given a rubber bullet before a stage kicked off, so the guys had to run the stage under increased pressure, not knowing the final outcome. The gendarmes point out that there was a chance to win a higher place and will certainly invest more attention to additionally adapt their training preparations for the next competition, as the best teams from the competition do, with a possible extension of preparation time (this year they have been preparing for 17 days only).

A detail from competition. : The UAE SWAT Challenge

The SAJ Team was helmed by their skipper, Aleksandar Maričić, an experienced operator and exceptional athlete. Mare points out that a top result was achieved — the best by far — and does not hide his pride for every team member, knowing that all of them gave their best. This-year experience, as well as the obstacle course at their base, will help the well picked and trained team to prepare even better for the competition in 2024.

The SAJ Team won the amazing 4th place, Gendarmerie Team took 22nd, while guys from the Montenegrin Counter-Terrorist Unit won 23rd. The Albanian team from RENEA won 48th.

• DUBAI SWAT CHALLENGE
• SAJ
• GENDARMERIE

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