An Army captain who survived attacks by two suicide bombers moments apart but was badly wounded as he saved his fellow soldiers in Afghanistan received the Medal of Honor on Thursday.
President Barack Obama awarded (Ret.) Army Capt. Florent Groberg the honor for what the White House called “his selfless service” during a deadly attack in Kunar Province, Afghanistan, in August 2012.
“He deployed to Afghanistan twice. First as a platoon leader, and a couple of years later when he was hand-picked to head up a security detail,” Obama said Thursday in a White House ceremony.
Obama, who had first met Groberg three years ago during a visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, praised his work ethic and determination as a college athlete.
“Training. Guts. Teamwork. What made Flo a great runner also made him a great soldier,” Obama said during the White House ceremony.
Groberg and five other soldiers were providing a security detail for senior U.S. military leaders as they were heading down a street toward the provincial governor’s compound when an ambush started to unfold.
