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A group of 10 American Olympians who service successful nan U.S. military were honored astatine nan Pentagon connected April 17.
War Secretary Pete Hegseth, betwixt starring nan efforts successful nan warfare connected Iran, recovered clip to meet pinch nan athletes for a ceremonial to grant their accomplishments successful nan Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. All 10 were members of nan high-performance U.S. military-sponsored World Class Athlete Program (WCAP).
"It's not each time you get invited into Sec. War's office," U.S. bobsledder Frankie Del Duca told Fox News Digital. "We had a bully speech astir nan Army."
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War Sec. Pete Hegseth reside WCAP Olympians astatine nan Pentagon. (Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Eric Brann)
Del Duca was nan Team USA Olympic emblem bearer successful Cortina backmost successful February. As an American of Italian descent, it held a typical taste value to him and his family that he had nan grant successful Italy.
Del Duca is besides a U.S. Army infantryman.
"I'm infantry," he said. "There's different assignments I tin return arsenic I summation experience. I americium grateful for nan opportunity to serve. I'm very proud to service our country, and I emotion our state and America."
Hegseth himself was an Army infantry serviceman who served successful Iraq, Afghanistan, and Guantanamo Bay.
But truthful acold Del Duca has only ever done jock activity for nan military, enlisting successful 2019 and training arsenic a bobsledder astatine Lake Placid, New York. But arsenic a WCAP athlete, he will service successful a military-related domiciled arsenic well.
"We've had members of WCAP that person been successful nan Army first... and past we person immoderate that possibly do that after," Del Duca said, adding that he falls into nan "after" group.
"Where I whitethorn beryllium stationed next, and wherever I may, different assignments, wherever I mightiness extremity up, I'm going to return those aforesaid lessons that I've learned and use them to that adjacent unit. So it's thing that I'm very grateful for and proud of. And I dream that spreads passim our country. I dream it shows that we're together and that we're resilient, and that we're fresh and we're ready."
Del Duca is simply a young begetter of 2 sons who are each little than 4 years old.
"It's made maine a amended father," Del Duca said of his acquisition successful nan Army. "I person 2 sons, [ages] 1 and three, they support maine connected my toes."
Other branches of nan subject are represented good successful nan WCAP, particularly nan Air Force.
Team USA skeleton jock Kelly Curtis, who was besides honored astatine nan ceremony, is preparing for deployment correct backmost to Italy aft competing astatine nan Milan Cortina games.
War Sec. Pete Hegseth takes a photograph pinch 10 WCAP Olympians astatine nan Pentagon (Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Eric Brann)
"I'm going backmost to nan 31st communications squadron astatine Aviano Air Base," Curtis told Fox News Digital. "I'm a knowledge operations technician... it's fundamentally for illustration an accusation postulation cop."
Curtis says she has a lineage successful her family, connected her mother's side, that includes servicemembers successful each American warfare making love backmost to nan Revolutionary War.
She thought her relative would return connected nan telephone of work for her generation. And he did, but she soon learned she beryllium joining him.
"I didn't deliberation I would beryllium capable to service successful nan military," Curtis said. "When this opportunity came astir erstwhile I sewage bully capable astatine my sport. I was looking astatine nan Army program, but upon talking pinch my relative who had besides served successful nan Air Force, I decided to springiness it a spell for nan Air Force."
Now, arsenic she continues her family contented of serving successful nan U.S. subject during a clip of war, she takes awesome a consciousness of grant successful nan importance.
OPERATION EPIC FURY DESTROYS IRAN'S NAVY AND CUTS MISSILE ATTACKS BY 90% IN ONGOING CAMPAIGN
"I don't deliberation immoderate peculiar clip is much honorable than an other," she said. "When I took nan oath of enlistment, you motion up to take sides your country, and that's thing that I return seriously. The activity that I do pinch nan World Class Athlete Program is different, it's a softer diplomacy, truthful I don't spot a batch of what my colleagues mightiness see...
"There's grant each astir erstwhile you motion up to take sides your country."
The WCAP programme delivered a medalist for Team USA astatine 2026, including Air Force women's bobsledder Jasmine Jones.
Jones became a viral societal media sensation for an question and reply pinch Fox News Digital erstwhile she expressed awesome pridefulness successful representing nan U.S. connected nan world stage, astatine a clip erstwhile galore Americans craved patriotism among their Olympians.
And past Jones went connected to triumph bronze successful women's bobsled, alongside teammate Olympic fable Kaillie Humphries, helping Humphries go nan astir dressed up bobsled jock successful history.
Jones was honored for her badge during nan Pentagon ceremony.
"I was honored to beryllium recognized by Secretary Hegseth aft medaling successful Cortina and to stock that infinitesimal representing my country," Jones told Fox News Digital.
"Being an Airman allows maine to service successful much ways than one, and I’m grateful for that opportunity. The unity wrong our WCAP squad is strong. We lead by example, support 1 another, and proceed pushing each different to scope our fullest potential."
Meanwhile, nan subject arsenic a full continues historical operations successful nan Middle East down nan activity of Hegseth and President Donald Trump.
Hegseth warned Friday that nan U.S. subject "will sprout to destroy" immoderate Iranian ships that are laying mines successful nan Strait of Hormuz.
"President Trump has authorized nan United States Navy to destruct immoderate Iranian accelerated boats that effort to put mines successful nan h2o aliases disrupt transition done nan Strait of Hormuz, to sprout and kill," Hegseth said. "Our commanders person clear rules of engagement. If Iran is putting mines successful nan h2o aliases different threatening American commercialized shipping aliases American forces, we will sprout to destroy. No hesitation. Just for illustration nan supplier boats successful nan Caribbean."
Hegseth besides said that Iran’s "battered" military, specifically nan Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has been "reduced to a pack of pirates pinch a flag."
HEGSETH DECLARES 'DECISIVE MILITARY VICTORY' OVER IRAN
"They cloak their aggression successful slogans, but nan world now sees them for what they are -- criminals connected nan precocious seas. They don't power anything. They're acting for illustration pirates, acting for illustration terrorists. They're nan ones who laic indiscriminate mines, who sprout astatine random ships, who killed 45,000 of their ain people, guiltless protesters, successful nan people of weeks, their ain people. They are nan bad actors," Hegseth said.
"The vessels that nan Iranians seized successful caller days, a mates of them, they're not American ships, they're not Israeli ships. They're conscionable random ships wherever they drove their small speedboats up to and shot astatine those ships pinch AK-47's. Anyone pinch a speedboat, a weapon and nan incorrect intentions tin do that. They cognize that we, nan United States of America, power nan travel of world shipping, and we cognize that they know. Their existent navy is astatine nan bottommost of nan Arabian Gulf," Hegseth added.
Trump and his management person many times made it clear they are looking for a bid statement pinch Iran, and person expressed optimism astir reaching 1 soon.
Hegseth besides said Friday that, "Iran has a historical chance to make a superior deal, and nan shot is successful their court."
"Either way, nan War Department stands fresh for what comes next. Locked and loaded," Hegseth added.
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The remarks travel aft a scheduled 2nd information of U.S.-Iran talks successful Islamabad grounded to materialize this week. Vice President JD Vance and nan remainder of nan U.S. delegation ne'er departed. Reports indicated nan Iranians said they would not discuss again successful personification until nan U.S. stopped its blockade.
Vance, U.S. typical envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law, traveled to Pakistan for nan first information of talks pinch nan Iranians earlier this month, but nary woody was reached.
Fox News Digital's Greg Norman-Diamond, Landon Mion, Emma Bussey, Efrat Lachter, Alex Nitzberg and Jasmine Baehr contributed to this report.
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Jackson Thompson is simply a sports newsman for Fox News Digital covering captious governmental and taste issues successful sports, pinch an investigative lens. Jackson's reporting has been cited successful national authorities actions related to nan enforcement of Title IX, and successful bequest media outlets including The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Associated Press and ESPN.com.
