Why almost half of the Russian medals in Tokyo were won by members of the security structures?

At the last Olympic Games, Russia won 71 medals, which is the best result for the country in the last 17 years. And almost half of these medals were won by people from the military, the police and the national guard.

Sofia Velikaya – team gold and individual silver in fencing – captain of the armed forces.

Vitalina Batsarashkina – two golds, one silver in archery – lieutenant of the Russian National Guard.

Evgeniy Rilov – two individual golds, one team silver – senior sergeant in the police.

Such “athletes with epaulettes” on the victory podium in Tokyo among the Russian Olympic champions were almost half. But where did so many officers, ensigns and sergeants come from? Does Russia prepare champions in companies and special battalions?

Soviet tradition

Well, it’s not quite like that. Soldiers really stood at the beginning of Soviet sports, because in the Red Army competitions were held to determine who was the best. During the USSR, it was the members of the Red Army who made up the elite of Soviet sports. In the mid-thirties of the last century, army military clubs and societies appeared, as well as the practice of inviting the best athletes in the country to them. For example, there are known cases when the football and hockey teams of the Soviet Union were practically entirely composed of officers.

Many of these sports structures that were established under the state departments exist to this day and the best athletes in the whole country are still training in their composition, which is why the best schools and coaches work in them. The most popular are CSK (Central Sports Club of the Army) and Dynamo (sports society of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which previously included the military units of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which later formed the Russian National Guard).

How are ranks assigned?

Of course, no one forces athletes to do military service in the barracks. Athletes’ ranks in these clubs and societies are awarded based on sports performance.

“Advancement in the service depends on sports results. The title of the athletes of the permanent team is captain, and therefore every athlete has the opportunity to reach this military rank or even slightly exceed it in the case of special merits”, CSKA head Colonel Artyom Gromov said in the show “among other things”.

That is, athletes in clubs and societies receive ranks after the success achieved in international competitions, which is a practice originating from the USSR. Today in such army clubs there are two categories of athletes: soldiers and civilians who sign a contract.

“We have an expert council that makes a recommendation which of the leading Russian athletes make sense to be called up for military service, and with whom a contract should be concluded,” explains the press center of CSKA. This gives the athletes solid financial support, they also receive a salary from the Army Club along with military rank allowances, so that after their sports career they can continue with a military career.

Is it just a Russian practice?

No, all over the world many sports stars are also members of the army, and this also allows them to participate in the games of the International Military Sports Confederation (IMSC), which is the most influential organization in the world after the International Olympic Committee.