FORT RILEY, Kansas – The 1st Infantry Division and Fort Riley celebrated 108 years of the Big Red One, and 250 years of the United States Army, during Victory Week 2025.
Victory Week is a tradition of sportsmanship, competition, and camaraderie to celebrate the First Division. Soldiers competed in a variety of sporting events, including flag football, volleyball, basketball, soccer, 3/5/10k walk/run, innovation challenge, archery and trap shoot, cycling, functional fitness, combatives, tug of war, spouse kickball tournament, and more throughout the week. The brigade with the most points from across these events takes home the coveted Victory Cup trophy.
More than 2,000 Soldiers and Family members participated in events, contributing to their units’ overall score and boosting morale. “Victory Week is a great opportunity for Soldiers to get out there and have some fun and compete against the other units,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Jason Joseph, Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion command sergeant major, 1st Infantry Division Artillery. He highlighted that HHBn took first place in three events throughout the week.
The 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team captured the Victory Cup for 2025, with the brigade command team, Col. Tom Smith and Command Sgt. Maj. Jake Huckleby accepting the trophy.
“Every day is a great day to be a Big Red One Soldier, but especially today,” said Huckleby, who praised his teams’ hard work, telling them before each event, “Stay savage; prepare for battle!”
One of the cornerstone events of Victory Week is the Commanders vs. Command Sergeants Major softball game. This year’s game was held at Rathert Stadium in Junction City, highlighting the close ties between Fort Riley and the surrounding community, with the Commanders winning 26-11.