Captain

President Obama Awards Medal of Honor to Md. Army Captain

President Barack Obama says an Army captain who spared fellow soldiers by tackling a suicide bomber in Afghanistan had the instincts and courage to do what was needed.

Obama presented the Medal of Honor to Florent Groberg at a White House ceremony Thursday.

The medal is the nation's top military honor for battlefield bravery.

The 32-year-old Groberg is credited with saving many lives when he tried to stop the suicide bomber in August 2012. Three service members and a foreign service officer were killed when the bomber's vest exploded.

Groberg has said that he did not think of the possibility he would be killed when he tackled the suicide bomber.

"At that moment, you're not processing it's going to detonate right now," he said. "It's just, You've got to get him away as fast as possible, as far as possible, immediately."

Groberg suffered a severe leg injury and underwent 33 surgeries to save it. He is medically retired from the Army.

His coaches from Walter Johnson High School in Bethesda attended the ceremony.

"He was second in the state in the two mile, but he helped lead one of our relays to a state championship, so that's something he'll always have as well," his track coach, Tom Martin said.

His track coach at the University of Maryland remembered him as a leader and a team player.

"He was so passionate about the relays, more so than the individual event," Andrew Valmon said. "Clearly, a collective group of guys getting together, and that's why he's on the all-time list on two relays now."

Groberg has said he shares the Medal of Honor with the four who didn't make it home alive.
 

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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