San Diego, California Talk Radio Station - 760 KFMB AM - 760kfmbWounded warriors getting back into the game

CAMP PENDLETON (CBS 8) - They may be down, but they are certainly not out. On Thursday, hundreds of wounded Marines gathered at Camp Pendleton to kick off an intense athletic competition.

It's a competition between 300 or so Marines, wounded in both combat and non-combat, but who are now focused on beating the odds and each other to become part of an elite 50 who will represent the Corps at the annual Warrior Games.

The Wounded Warrior Regiment is designed to give these Marines an alternative to traditional physical therapy, to show them they can still accomplish great things despite their disability.

"It's an eye opener, to see all these guys out here with missing limbs and you realize what they're really going through," Lisa Cassel said.

Cassel is there supporting her fiance Tyler Benton, who's competing in archery. She says just being involved in the annual competition helps him in so many ways.

"He's smiling a lot more, yeah he's opened up a lot," Lisa said.

"My morale's jumped up, my attitude has changed. I feel more like a Marine than I have in a long time," Marine athlete Sgt. Tyler Benton said.

"It's very important to the psyche and to the well being, the physical and mental well being of these Marines," Colonel Jay Krail said.

Krail says the competition changes the wounded Marines' outlook on life, which is the case with Richie Chavis, who lost his ability to walk after he stepped onto an IED. He says being able to compete in Discus, Shot Put, Archery and Air Rifle allows him to keep his mind busy, and not focus on his injury, allowing him to feel like a Marine again.

"The sense of accomplishing something," Richie said.

The full competition in the trials gets underway Friday with wheelchair basketball. They'll finish up on February 21, and the final Marine Corps team will be assembled and begin their training for the Warrior Games in April, where all branches of the services will have wounded warrior teams.

2011 NCAA wrestling champion Anthony Robles, who was born with a disability, has been on hand providing encouragement to the Marines. He said just seeing how the wounded warriors overcome their disabilities inspires him.