The 2018 “Tank Biathlon” competition show took place at the Stalin Line Historical and Cultural Complex.

On 21 April 2018, the 2018 “Tank Biathlon” competition show took place at the Stalin Line Historical and Cultural Complex with the support of the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Belarus.

The complex opened its doors to visitors at 11:00. Guests could enjoy a range of interactive activities: everyone had the opportunity to test their knowledge in a history quiz, try airgun shooting and weapon assembly and disassembly, and take part in other activities. The most agile and accurate participants in the Ready for Labour and Defence (GTO) area received certificates and prizes. A children’s playroom and a colourful interactive show by Asyas the Clown entertained younger visitors.At 14:00, a military-historical reenactment of a battle from the 1942 Rzhev–Vyazma operation began.

This offensive by the Kalinin and Western Fronts took place from 8 January to 20 April 1942. It continued the Soviet counter-offensive near Moscow and was one of the bloodiest operations of the Great Patriotic War: in just four months of fighting, the Red Army suffered around 770,000 casualties, according to official Soviet figures. Total enemy losses amounted to around 330,000 soldiers and officers killed, wounded or missing.

The operation played an important role in the Red Army’s general offensive. Soviet forces pushed the enemy back 250 km in the western direction, completed the liberation of the Moscow and Tula Regions, and liberated many districts of the Kalinin and Smolensk Regions. The operation resulted in the formation of the Rzhev–Vyazma salient.

The reenactment featured members of military-history clubs: the Soldiers of Victory Military History Club, the Motorised Infantry section, the Shuravi section, the Era Military History Club and the White Tower Military History Club.The “Tank Biathlon” competition show began after the reenactment.Background: Tank biathlon — is a type of large-scale event that was previously held behind closed doors but is now open to everyone. It is based on practical competitions between tank crews, testing their tank-driving skills and accuracy when firing the tanks’ main and secondary armament.The first international tank biathlon competition took place on 17 August 2013 at the Alabino training ground near Moscow. Tank crews from Russia, Armenia, Belarus and Kazakhstan took part. In the Republic of Belarus the Tank Biathlon competition was held for the first time on 22 October 2016.Despite strong winds, with gusts sometimes reaching 10 m/s, the show attracted around 3 000 spectators. They were not disappointed. Spectators saw the power of the T-72 armoured vehicles at first hand, watched them negotiate obstacles in spectacular fashion, observed the crews’ well-coordinated teamwork and even caught the smell of gunsmoke.

The competition was overseen by a panel of judges, many of whom had themselves competed on numerous occasions in Belarus and Russia and had won prizes.

Panel of judges:

Captain Dmitry Sergeyevich Artemochkin

Senior Warrant Officer Denis Alexandrovich Moiseyenko

Lieutenant Dmitry Alexandrovich Nevar

Not every crew managed to complete the course without penalty points. But that is the nature of competition: the strongest prevail. The winners were greeted with an ovation.The final standings were as follows: