Firefighter Challenge®: May 2018

Tuesday, May 15, 2018

Sport and the Ukrainian Fire Service

It’s difficult to wrap our minds around how European fire brigade integrate sport into their budgets. It’s not like here where everything that rings of “sport” is an arms-length relationship. You may have watched some of the events in which firefighters participate in on YouTube.

While in Kiev, the firefighters put on a demonstration for me. A video compendium can be viewed on our Vimeo account here:

Kiev Firefighters participating in sports events

Over the next several postings, I’ll be providing narrative and photos of the sights and activities from Ukraine, including the visit to Chernobyl.

Sunday, May 6, 2018

More Ukrainian Emergency Services info

We’ve visited several of the fire stations in Ukraine, including HQ and the Training Academy. They have a maze-smoke building and an incredible gym that includes a four-lane track, pool, basketball-volleyball court.

Firefighters and their families live in this apartment building above the apparatus bay

My wife got a shot at the Jaws of Life and cut a piece of rebar. Debbie wielding the Jaws of LIfe at the Kiev FD

There are four lanes for sprinting in the obstacle course where a ladder might be carried and a balance beam transversed.

Saturday, May 5, 2018

The Kiev, Ukraine Fire Service

I’m sharing with you some of the highlights from my visit to several of the fire stations in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine.

The newest piece of apparatus is a Ford engine

Kiev is a city of more than 3.5M and a fire service of approximately 3500. There are over 25 stations. Julia, wife of Special Operations Chief served as our translator.

Thursday, May 3, 2018

Dateline: Kiev Ukraine

Travels this week take us to the capital of Ukraine, where discussions surrounding the implementation of the Firefighter Combat Challenge are taking place. Photos tell the story better than words.

View from the tower of the Headquarters Station in Kiev, Ukraine

Meeting with the Chief of Department and review of video of Challenge site

We’ll continue to post more photos and narrative as the week continues. Looking for some North American competitors that would be interested in coming to Ukraine.

Dr. Paul O. Davis, Ph.D., FACSM

Dr. Paul earned his doctoral degree from the University of Maryland, School of Public Health, Department of Kinesiology where he placed major emphasis on the study of occupational fitness requirements and the quantification of work physiology. His dissertation on the energy costs and oxygen/lactate kinetics of structural firefighting was the first published study of its kind.

He has consulted for a number of law enforcement

organizations, including the NYPD, DEA, US Secret Service, Pennsylvania State Police, US Marshals Service, IACP and the FBI. Projects of note have included the development of job-related physical performance and medical standards for a number of law enforcement agencies. Dr. Davis has also conducted in-depth studies of the requirements for SWAT, K-9, and industrial security positions. Most recently under contract to FOH (Federal Occupational Health) he designed the entry and graduation criteria for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), IEAs (Immigration Enforcement Agents); the largest-ever hiring initiative (n=5,000). In another FOH contract he was part of an elite team tasked with a year-long embed study in the Southwest for the US Border Patrol to mitigate workers comp injuries.

As a consultant to the US Navy, he validated the Marine Corps’ PT test through a comprehensive JTA (job task

analysis) of essential functions in amphibious, jungle, desert and high altitude, cold weather operations.

An internationally recognized authority on the subject of

fitness standards and equal employment opportunity issues, Dr. Davis has participated in over 70 legal proceedings as an expert witness. In the seminal Lanning v SEPTA case, he won the accolades of the presiding federal judge as “the

preeminent expert on physical performance standards.” He has appeared on behalf of such organizations as the U.S. Department of Justice, OSHA, Equal Employment

Opportunity Commission, and the FBI, as well as many other state and local governments. He has also testified before the House Select Committee on Aging regarding performance-based health and fitness assessment and submitted invited testimony on Women in Ground Combat for the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Dr. Davis is a member and fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and holds that organization’s highest level of certification. He has authored over 200 technical reports, manuals, articles and most recently co-authored with Dr. Bryan Sharkey the book: Hard Work, dealing with his research on the relationship between human physical performance factors and health.

His professional accomplishments were recognized with a Governor’s Citation for the State of Maryland. He is a inductee of the Fire Heritage Hall of Leaders, Legends and Legacies.Consistent with his lifelong commitment to promoting first responder health, fitness, and readiness, Dr. Davis is well known for creating unique public safety competitions including: the Firefighter Combat Challenge® (now in its 32nd season), the L.E.O.P.A.R.D. (Law Enforcement Officer Performance and

Reaction Drill), the World SWAT Challenge, the Army's Best Ranger Competition and the newly recreated Military Battle Challenge®. Throughout the years, these programs have

received very wide televised coverage on the ESPN, Discovery, A&E, CBS, NBC and ABC television networks and, as the creator and expert commentator, Dr. Davis provides color

commentary.