International Army Games and Tank Biathlon
Conventionally, for the period of the Army Games, Patriot Park includes:
Airfield, air force base and site in Kubinka.
Tank and rifle range of the 2nd Taman motorized rifle division
Army Games – the International Competitions, started in 2015 with a tank biathlon in Alabino and expanded to various branches of service in different cities and countries, including primarily Russia and China.
The main competitions, the International Army Games, are:
- “Tank biathlon” – tank crews competition (Alabino, Moscow region)
- “Suvorov attack” – Infantry Fighting Vehicle ( IFV – BMP) crews competition (Korla, China)
- “Masters of Armored Vehicles” – armored vehicle crews (Nakhabino, Moscow region)
- “Open water” – pontoon bridge units (Murom, Vladimir region)
- “Engineering formula” – engineering vehicle crews (Tyumen)
- “Safe route” – engineering units (Tyumen)
- “Maintenance battalion” – maintenance units (Omsk, Siberia)
- “Safe environment” – NBC protection units (Korla, China)
- “Military rally” – armored vehicle crews (Volgograd, ex. Stalingrad)
- “Sniper frontier” – snipers competition (Gvardeyskiy training area, Otar, Kazakhstan ? and Alabino – Patriot park, Moscow region)
- “Army Scout Master” – reconnaissance units (Novosibirsk) and ? Patriot park, Moscow ? Kubinka
- “Elbrus Ring” – mountain units (Terskol, Kabardino-Balkaria, near Pyatigorsk)
- “Master of artillery fire” – mortar crews (Gvardeyskiy training area, Otar, Kazakhstan)
- “Gunsmith master” – competition among maintenance platoons (Korla, China)
- “Avia-darts” – flight crews competition (Changchun, China) and ? Kubinka
- “Clear sky” – air defense units (Korla, China)
- “Keys to the Sky” – air defense missile units (Ashuluk training area, Astrakhan region)
- “Airborne platoon” – Competition among paratrooper competition (Guangxu, China) and ? Patriot park (Moscow region)
- “Seaborne assault” – marine units (Klerk training area, Primorsky Krai) and ? Sevastopol Crimea area
- “Sea cup” – warship crews (Vladivostok, water zone of the Japan Sea, Baku, Azerbaijan, Caspian Sea water zone) and (? Sevastopol Crimea)
- “Depth” – divers competition (Sevastopol, Crimea)
- “True friend” – dog handlers (Dmitrov, Moscow region)
- “Military medical relay race” – medical units (Saint Petersburg)
- “Field kitchen” – food service specialists (Alabino, Moscow region)
- “Guardian of Order” – military police units (Alabino, Moscow region)
- “Warrior of commonwealth” – CIS (ex. USSR) servicemen (Minsk, Belarus)
Field Kitchen and National Food
Probably, competitions in cooking in the Field Kitchen are the most enjoyable and delicious for visitors to the Army Games. In addition to the military competition, all participating countries presented a free tasting of their traditional national food. France, of course, is the world leader in delicacies, but army food has its own characteristics. From a limited number of useful and necessary products for a soldier, it is necessary to quickly prepare food in the field. It is desirable that such food should also be very tasty. The lines of people wanting to try each national cuisine were huge, and the amount of food was limited. Each national cuisine is unique and interesting, so there were a lot of people interested. Uzbekistan is traditionally famous for its melons and watermelons, which are delicious and sweet. Representatives of this country gave useful advice on how to choose these fruit delicacies correctly. In Uzbekistan, dark grapes are used to make raisins, a component of pilaf or oriental sweets. The food of Belarus is soups, potatoes and mushrooms, very tasty and filling. Kazakhstan presented delicious hot national flatbreads, a traditional type of bread in Asia. Armenia has always had very strong chefs. Many cafes and restaurants in Moscow belong to the Armenian diaspora. Even at the Kubinka Tank Museum, the main café for visitors and employees for many years belonged to the Armenian Petros, a former soldier of the tank forces. In our opinion, Armenian chefs cook kebabs and meat dishes very well. Tajikistan is also famous for its oriental flatbreads and sweet fruits. Indian cuisine is considered spicy and not for everyone. Serbian food is connected to the history, culture, geography and nature of the Balkans. Many guests enjoyed exploring and tasting. But the most exotic, most interesting and delicious food was the cuisine of Israel. Jewish restaurants are found all over the world and have an excellent reputation for both food quality and service. Israel, like France, is a leader in tourism, so it poses strong competition in the field of food. The seafood is especially delicious. Healthy and enjoyable food is the calling card of Jewish restaurants. Unfortunately, the number of people wishing to try Jewish national cuisine was greater than the available food. In this sector there was also a small exhibition of Russian field kitchens from the Second World War and the Cold War. For the first time such a collection was exhibited in one of the pavilions of the Kubinka Tank Museum during the creation of Patriot Park. Then the collection moved to the Aerospace sector and was sometimes shown at the Patriot Park Expo during the Army Forum. Wanting to thank the organizers of such a wonderful competition, our team donated unique original historical photographs of the field kitchen of the Russian Imperial Army at the beginning of the 20th century. It was planned that these old photographs would decorate the exhibition of field kitchens in Patriot Park. On our Guide we also post information about Russian dry rations during the Cold War and modern times. A photo gallery from the International Army Games 2017 in Alabino is attached.
- Field Kitchen Competition 2017 at Patriot Park
- Map of the location of the pavilions of the participating countries
- Many TV journalists near Russian cuisine
- Folk costumes of Kyrgyzstan
- Armenian cuisine
- Large flatbreads and fruit basket from Tajikistan
- Uzbek cuisine, famous pilaf with meat, vegetables
- Decoration of melon and watermelon
- Serbian cuisine, girl in national costume
- Unusual and beautiful uniforms and insignia of Serbian military cooks
- Collection of Russian field kitchens from the Cold War period.
Learn more about:
- Modern Russian Army uniforms and insignias, including tanks, auto, paratroopers, special forces
- Army food for the combat operations, for missions (individual food ration)
During the International Army Games, visitors to the main competition site in the Moscow region are given the opportunity to explore Patriot Park and the Kubinka Tank Museum, located next to Alabino.
The International Army Games were at their most active in 2022, although a full-scale conflict between Russia and Ukraine had already begun. According to official information from the Russian Ministry of Defense, 35 countries took part in the 2022 International Army Games, with competitions taking place in 12 countries, including Venezuela.
The Games schedule included various events throughout almost the entire month of August.
1. Tank Biathlon, see more about rules, revews, photos, uniforms, medals..
2. Suvorov Attack* (or Onslaught) – is a competition at the Korla training ground in China for BMP-2 (BMP-3) crews, including an individual crew race, a team relay race, shooting from an automatic cannon and a PKT machine gun at targets depicting an enemy BMP, a low-flying helicopter and an anti-tank gun. During the course, the BMP overcomes various obstacles: a track bridge, a comb, a slope, an escarpment, a ford, a mound, a firing line and an anti-tank ditch. In addition to shooting, the judge also evaluates the repair time – replacing a damaged track, removing and installing batteries, as well as self-extraction with a log.
Attention collectors: the winners, crew members are awarded special medals (1st, 2nd and 3rd place), and the team receives a cup for first place.
3. Sniper Frontier – a sniper competition in Venezuela (Barkisimento) and Iran (Yazd) in individual, pair and team shooting. The team includes up to 17 people, shooting is carried out from a 7.62 semi-automatic sniper rifle with a standard optical army sight. Unlike the sport biathlon, the sniper, individually or in a team, overcomes army obstacles, shoots at night, also uses the legendary PM (Makarov pistol) and even throws a combat grenade. Everything happens as in a modern war.
4. The horse marathon in Mongolia (city of Ulaanbaatar) includes competitions of pack and transport units for long and short distances. Each team includes up to 10 people and horses, including a sniper commander, a grenade launcher, a machine gunner, a signalman and a doctor. The weapons are almost historical, as in Afghanistan: Kalashnikov assault rifle (AK-74), machine gun (PK), grenade launcher (RPG-7v) and sniper rifle (SVD). 21st century, cybernetics and ultra-modern weapons, but combat experience has shown the effective use of horses in some, especially Arab, countries and in the mountains. For this reason, in the main Russian military school of the Airborne Forces in the city of Ryazan, cadets undergo training in equestrian affairs. The GRU special forces also have equestrian training. Shooting from small arms is carried out according to army traditions standing, kneeling and lying down at different types of targets (8, 10A, 5A). Shooting from a grenade launcher is carried out at an imitation tank (target N12). In addition to shooting and throwing grenades, the competition also includes overcoming a water obstacle, a lake or river, a minefield, a hike in the mountains and organizing an overnight stay. One section of the competition completely replicates the standard army obstacle course, including a ditch, running along a gully, crawling under barbed wire, overcoming a fence and trench, a labyrinth, a destroyed bridge, an inclined board and the second floor of a house. The winners are determined by the time it takes to complete the entire course and by the number of points.
5. Army Scout Masters (or Military Intelligence Excellence) is a team competition in Novosibirsk in various shooting exercises, driving an infantry fighting vehicle, operating behind enemy lines, and determining the coordinates of an object. The competition includes driving an infantry fighting vehicle in difficult conditions, shooting from a machine gun, assault rifle, sniper rifle, pistol, and grenade launcher, as well as throwing a knife, entrenching tool, and grenade. Traditional 1-kilometer run and army hand-to-hand combat. Since the times of the USSR, the Novosibirsk Military School has been a leader in training military intelligence commanders, and has a good training ground, which is now used for holding Army Games. We provide a description of entrenching tools and army hand-to-hand combat in a separate section of our guide and reference book. The winners of this competition also received special medals, diplomas, and valuable gifts. For collectors, we note that in the Russian army there is a special chest badge “Excellent Military Intelligence Officer”, made according to the model of the “Excellent Soviet Army Officer” badge.