The International Army Games, held by the Russian Ministry of Defense, is an annual public display of national military might.
Unlike other military sports events, which include competitions in common sports that are related to physical training for the military, Russia might have gotten a bit creative with the definition of the word ‘military’ when establishing the involved competitions.
First established in 2015, it includes competitions whose name sounds like they were taken out of a video game: tank biathlon, Suvorov attack, aviadarts and masters of artillery fire. Besides these contests, there is also a field cooking contest, a dog race called “True Friend,” art/literary and military history competitions.
This year, Vietnam joined teams from 39 countries for its second year in the Army Games, sections of which were hosted by 10 different countries.
The People's Army of Vietnam sent eight teams to compete in eight of the 32 total categories. The teams participating included tank crews, medical staff, food service specialists, emergency rescue team, arts and dancing contestants, snipers, combat engineers and a chemical team.
Despite being a newcomer, having only competed in just three disciplines last year, Vietnam managed to come second in the tank biathlon competition, reports Dan Tri. It lost to Uzbekistan but bested Cuba and Uganda in the final group. The country’s engineering, chemical and search-rescue team also got bronze medals.
While Vietnam’s surprising performance is less likely to warrant a đi bão situation, authorities seem to be pleased with the camaraderie boost the Army Games offered.
[Photo via Nguoi Lao Dong]
