When Yen Soto got ready to heave the solid iron shotput, she gave it all she had.
The mother of four and now medically retired Marine major eyed her competition, whom she described as “all built bigger and taller” than she was. She focused on being in the correct position as she prepared to thrust the metal ball from her neck, while using her legs and torso for power.
“I thought there was no way I was going to beat any of those ladies,” Soto said, giving a blow-by-blow of her experience during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials, being held at Camp Pendleton through Monday, March 2. “They’re obviously stronger, bigger; they’ve done this before.”
The event, which opened with ceremonies on Wednesday, Feb. 25, has more than 200 wounded, ill or injured active-duty and veteran service members competing in the adaptive sports invitational at the seaside base.
The competition is meant to build camaraderie and family among the wounded warriors. Most of the athletes, including Soto, are competing in sports they’ve never done before; their teammates cheering them on. This year’s trials include teams from the Marines, the Air Force and Space Force, and two international teams, one from Ukraine and one from Great Britain.
“I felt like I was a crazy lady cause I’m literally jumping around cheering everyone on and I’m just getting the jitters out of my body and at the same time just trying to warm up my legs and focusing what I learned this week,” Soto said, describing her preparation for the shotput contest she only practiced twice. To her surprise, she was the only Marine competing, decribing a “giant field of blue” with the other Air Force athletes doing the shotput.
Marine Arion Klein competes in the 800 meter race during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Marine Isaac Gallegos competes in the 200 meter dash during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Marine Yen Soto celebrates earning a gold medal in the shot put and silver medal in the discus throw during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Fellow airman cheer for Kristen Domke as she competes in the 800 meter race during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Ukrainian Oleksii Dervnov competes in the 200 meter dash during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Team Air Force sweeps the 2500 meter class 6.0 race with Tania Miranda Banks getting the silver, left, Jacqueline Coche with the gold, center, and Kayshel Mulligan with the bronze during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, CA, on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Medals for the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Marine Kirema Lopez, center, celebrates her gold medal in the shot put with silver medalist, Airman Madison Cole, left, and gold medalist Airman Lindsay Wood during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Airman Eva De Jesus Collazo celebrates winning gold in the shot put and discus throw during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. She also won gold in the 100, 200, 400 and 800 meter runs. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Ukrainian Oleksii Dervnov, right, congratulates Marine Isaac Gallegos during the medal ceremony for the 200 meter dash class 5.0 during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Gallegos earned a silver medal and Dervnov got the bronze medal. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Marines take a team photo during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Airman Colten Grimm competes in the 800 meter race during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Airman Nicole Favuzza celebrates her gold medal win in the 100 meter dash class 6.0, center, with silver medalist Marine Giavanna Vicario, left, and bronze medalist Airman Ashley Graflund during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Marine Isaac Gallegos competes in the 200 meter dash class 5.0 during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Marine Arion Klein, right, hugs Colonel Morina Foster, commanding officer of wounded warrior regiment as she gets Klein gets the gold medal for winning the 100 meter dash during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Marine Isaac Gallegos races along side Brian Nietofelix in the 200 meter dash during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Marine Marshal Ivy competes in the in the 200 meter dash during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Marine Isaac Gallegos prepares to compete in the 200 meter dash during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Airman Jordan Waid competes in the the 200 meter dash during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Ukrainian Oleksii Dervnov competes in the 800 meter race during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Gallegos earned a silver medal and Dervnov got the bronze medal. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Airman Aaron De La Cruz (24) and Marine Adam Foutz (36) compete in the 800 meter race during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Airman Jessica Derhammer dances as she celebrates winning gold in the shot put and bronze in the discus throw during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Airman Marchelle Macken competes in the 800 meter race during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Airman Kristen Domke reacts after finishing the 800 meter race during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Marine Yen Soto celebrates earning a gold medal in the shot put and silver medal in the discus throw during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Fellow airman cheer for Kristen Domke as she competes in the 800 meter race during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Airman Kevin Greene celebrates getting the gold medal in the 100 meter dash Class 4.5A during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) Show Caption1 of 27Marine Arion Klein competes in the 800 meter race during the 2026 Marine Corps-Air Force Trials in Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Service members from the Air and Space Forces are at Camp Pendleton with the Marines for trials that began Wednesday. The Navy and Coast Guard are holding their Wounded Warrior Trials at Naval Air Station North Island starting Friday. Teams from the United Kingdom and Ukraine are also competing at Camp Pendleton. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG) ExpandWhen it was her turn, she stepped into the ring, went through her paces, spun, released the ball, and watched it fly across the field, not knowing how far it made it.
“I just threw it as hard as I could, cause I’m just trying to have fun,” Soto said.
Then she watched the others pitch theirs. Each athlete had a practice shot and then three throws that counted. Her last toss was her farthest, coming in at 7 meters, 8 centimeters.
“I’m listening to the numbers that they’re saying, and I’m seeing where the other balls are landing for the Air Force, and it was shorter than my throws,” she said. “Is this really happening?”
Later that day, she stood proudly, the Marine Corps flag wrapped around her, and accepted gold medals in shotput and power-lifting and a silver in discus.
For Soto, 40, the success at the trials — she still had cycling, rowing, and seated volleyball over the next few days — was a testament to the years of work and recovery she went through at Wounded Warrior – West at Camp Pendleton.
“That showed me what I’d been doing at the gym and working hard getting fit really helped with all of these sports,” she said.
Soto said that her life before and after Wounded Warrior is like night and day. Ever since she left the Wounded Warrior Battalion in 2025, Soto said, she threw herself into becoming as fit as she could be.
“I was in a really dark place when I first came to Wounded Warrior Battalion,” she said. “It’s been almost like a 180. Before, I always had a smile on my face, but it was a fake smile. And now, it feels like it’s a real smile. It exudes out of me. There’s so much joy and thankfulness, and now I just feel so blessed to have had that opportunity to really focus on myself and to be part of this program that helps me through such a dark time in my life.”
“(Winning the medals) was a great way of showing what I practiced has paid off,” she added. “It was such an amazing feeling.”
The regiment, established in 2007, provides comprehensive, personalized and non-medical care for wounded, ill and injured Marines and sailors attached to Marine units and their families.
The Marines, the only service with a command structure for its wounded warrior program, has two battalions, one at Camp Pendleton and the other at Camp Lejeune. Currently, 35,000 wounded warriors nationwide receive services. Some are assigned to the regiment, others remain attached to their units, and some have transitioned to civilian life.
These trials prepare athletes for selection for the Warrior Games in San Antonio in June. From the Warrior Games, a joint service team will be fielded to represent the U.S. at Invictus.
Like Soto, most athletes sign up for multiple disciplines. They prepare through the warrior conditioning programs with coaches and trainers.
“Everyone comes here, and their identity is shaken going through whatever ill and injured challenge they’re facing,” said Major Mark Harris, the operations officer for Wounded Warrior West.
Harris said the goal for recovery is to focus on the service members’ medical recovery, physical conditioning, giving them purpose and then their transitions.
“Some will make enough of a recovery to go back to their job, others have tracks for transitioning out, going to college, or vocational work,” he said. “Some go into entrepreneurial tracts, and others find a job right away. We have teams and resources, and the community aims at helping that transition.”
During the first 120 days following a Marine’s transition from a Wounded Warrior detachment, battalion, or regiment, officials check in to ensure Marines and their families can navigate daily living situations with the resources they need for independence.
After the initial 120-day window, check-ins shift to quarterly and then ultimately annually.
The program is deemed successful, Marine officials said, if a Marine and their family can transition to living independently, or if the servicemember encounters a setback and contacts the call center for assistance.
“When we hold these Marine Corps-Air Force trials, it brings it all together,” Harris added. “It’s about, ‘You’re part of a community and that community is very supportive,’ and we bring the resources to the athletes to be their best and demonstrate how they’re overcoming their challenges.”
Among those making progress is Staff Sgt. Marshal Ivy, an infantry Marine with three deployments, who before he was injured in a blast on a Camp Pendleton range, was an instructor at Infantry School – West. On Thursday, Feb. 26, he celebrated his 28th birthday with a gold medal win in the 200-meter dash.
An avid runner before he was injured with a traumatic brain injury that left him with initial limited mobility, he was ecstatic to get back into competition in the sport, he said.
“It took me out of the fight,” he said of the blast that occurred in April.
In July, he checked into Wounded Warrior Battalion-West and started work on his recovery.
“It’s been great, I see a mental health therapist for my PTSD, anxiety, and a massage therapist to help with my tension headaches and migraines,” he said. “I do art for healing, and I spend a lot of time working with the trainers to get on my physical conditions.”
Ivy guesses he’s back to 80%, with some days better than others. He expects to retire by the end of the year. His goal is to pursue physical training and possibly work as a firearms instructor, either in Southern California or in his home state of Colorado, he said.
The games have been “unbelievably helpful,” Ivy said, adding that earlier in the trials, he competed in power lifting, winning his weight class. “Being part of the team environment makes you feel like you’re part of a unit again, like with your guys in the fleet.”
Next up for him were cycling, swimming, and archery. He’d already won medals in other track and field events.
Not to be missed on the track was Staff Sgt. Kristen Domke, 33, who came to the event as part of the Air Force wounded warrior program, through which she has been healing from “invisible wounds.”
The former Security Forces airmen had the entire support of her Air Force team as she rolled across the finish in the 800-meter track race — everyone in this race competed in a track chair.
Though she was in last place, to her, it was a victory.
“I’ve had a lot of mental blocks, thinking I’m not good enough,” the 33-year-old from Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, said. “It’s weird to have so many people surrounding you, saying you’re doing great, but you don’t think you are. My whole goal was not to stop, and I finished!”
Related links
For injured warriors, annual Marine Corps Trials are a chance to compete Wounded and ill warriors find purpose in competition Wounded Warriors show off their athletic skills at Marine Corps Trials Wounded Warriors do battle on the basketball court at Camp Pendleton Two Marine veterans give service members a chance to recycle their skills while cleaning beaches“I never thought I’d be where I am today,” she added. “It’s nice to be celebrated.”
After Domke caught her breath, she gave kudos to her coach, Teresa Skinner, from Spokane, Wash., who also coaches for the Paralympics.
What’s helped her with her recovery, Domke said, is “leaning on God” and being part of a circle of people who support her, including Skinner, who she said, “tells the truth.”
For her, the trials were an experience she never imagined, she said, and an atmosphere she’s not found herself in before.
“If I have bad days now, they’re only bad moments,” she said. “I’ve not been in a funk since I’ve been here.”
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