The world will probably never find out which Navy SEALs rescued two aid workers in Somalia, or who fired the shot that killed Osama bin Laden in May 2011.
As part of the elite force that takes on the world's most dangerous assignments and took down the world's most wanted terrorist, members of SEAL Team Six are never identified, according to standard procedure.
American Jessica Buchanan and Danish citizen Poul Hagen Thisted were rescued Tuesday night by a team of SEALs in a raid near Gadaado, Somalia. Buchanan, 32, and Thisted, 60, had been held for three months after being captured by a band of Somalis in October.
Profile of a Navy SEAL Member
So what do we know about the Navy SEALs whose operation involved parachuting into the area and engaging in a firefight with the Somali kidnappers? We know that it was an all-male rescue team, because all SEALs are men.
The average Navy SEAL is about 30 years old, with a bachelors and possibly a masters degree. He is most likely white and may have a wife and children.
And is no doubt in perfect physical shape.
View Photos of U.S. Navy SEALs in Training
"They have gazelle legs, no waist and a huge upper body configuration and almost a mental block that says, 'I will not fail,'" said Richard Marcinko, the retired Navy SEAL commander who created the elite Team Six in 1980.
But he is also most likely hiding beneath a slightly disheveled exterior. Unlike other Navy SEALs, the members of SEAL Team Six most likely does not appear as clean cut.
He probably uses "modified grooming standards" including a beard and longer hair designed to help him blend in when operating overseas.
"If you've never met a Navy SEAL and you ran into one at a bar, you probably still wouldn't know he's a Navy SEAL," said former SEAL member Howard Wasdin.
Navy SEAL Team Six: The Men Who Killed Bin Laden
The night that Osama Bin Laden's death was announced, locals at Boneshakers Sports bar in Dam Neck, Va., where Navy SEAL Team Six trains, toasted someone they may never know by name, but who could easily be their neighbor.
"God bless the man who took the shot. He's going to live with that for the rest of his life. I'm proud of him. I'm very proud of him," said veteran Carl Browning.
Former SEALs say the man who killed bin Laden definitely was not on his first mission and he may even have pieces of shrapnel or "frag" still in him from previous firefights. His hands are probably calloused from firing a weapon thousands of times.
But inside, the man who killed bin Laden has something special -- a rare mental agility, an unflinching nature in the most harrowing situations and the seasoned sense of self to know he can succeed.
"They are basically individual egomaniacs that make music together. They learn to depend on each other. When they are bored they play with each other to keep pushing. Otherwise, they get in trouble," said Marcinko.
And just like any other well-trained athlete, killing public enemy No. 1 in just 40 minutes still won't keep him from getting a little good-natured ribbing from his teammates.
"Whoever was the lucky guy to make the squeeze, to take him down -- he's looking forward to the next mission," said Marcinko. "He was hard-assed by his teammates that it could have been done in twenty minutes. There is always that bubble of pushing for better success and expertise."
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