“Attention! RVSN [Strategic Rocket Forces team - ed.] - left! To the makeup room - march!”. These drill commands were heard on March 2 in Pereslavl-Zalessky, Yaroslavl Region, as the annual women’s military tournament got underway, humorously titled ‘Camo for Makeup’, in honor of International Women’s Day on March 8.
Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The ladies applied all manner of camouflage paint to their faces - stars, flags and bright colors among them.
Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
Then, the first stage began, which was traversing a fire assault strip, where the soldiers threw grenades, crawled under barbed wire and carried out emergency medical assistance procedures.
Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
“There was a big puddle there, with ice underneath. I got a nice bath,” said Oksana Sukhorukova, one of the contestants.
Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The women also took part in a biathlon race using Kalashnikov machine guns, according to the Ministry of Defense website.
Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
One of the stages involved radio telegraphing, with contestants having to send and receive transmissions quickly using Morse code.
Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
There was also an intellectual test - a cook-off in field conditions. This was followed, in true Russian fashion, by a beauty pageant.
Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The competition has been taking place every year since 2016, with the main prize being a trip around the cities of Russia’s Golden Ring. The winners, sadly, are not publicized.
Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation