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The finals of the first international competition will be held near Moscow from 12 to 17 of August. It involves four tanks painted in bright colors – including yellow and pinkish red – which are to go three laps over rough terrain, shooting at targets shaped like tanks, houses and helicopters.
The United States have already accepted the invitation to the next year’s championship as well as Italy and Germany.
The idea was born out of ordinary military need to check proficiency and gunnery skills. The contest is simple and repeats the rules of the classic biathlon: cover about 20km in shortest time while successfully hitting your targets.
But as long as we’re talking about tanks and their military arsenal, a crew has to hit targets with all their weapons. The first is main gun firing; the second is eliminating infantry targets with a 9mm machine gun; and the third is an assault of an ‘artillery battery’ with a 12.5mm anti-aircraft machine-gun. There are five targets at each stage. No tank leaves the range without hitting all targets.
These targets appear suddenly and only for some time, so a crew has to make immediate decisions as targets emerge from 600 meters to up to 2 km.
US accepts invitation to take part in tank biathlon in Russia in 2014 - Defense Minister Shoigu
A US crew may take part in so-called tank biathlon competitions in Russia along with Italian and German crews in 2014, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu told journalists in summing up outcomes of his negotiations in Washington.
"We have invited our American partners to take part in a tank biathlon competition on Russian territory. US Defense Secretary [Chuck] Hagel has accepted our invitation," Shoigu said.
It is presumed so far that the German, Italian and US crews will be participating in the competition on their own tanks.
"In the future, we will do all we can so that foreign armies purchase our tanks," Shoigu said.
He also expressed the hope that tank biathlon may become a paramilitary sport.
"I really hope that tank biathlon will become a new sport," he said.
Each tank will have to pass about 20 kilometers at a high speed and fire all types of its weapons.
The crews will have to hit targets simulating tanks and low-flying helicopters at ranges of 900 to 2,200 meters.
The final round of the competition will include an additional element: the participants will have to fire in motion with the tank's turret turned perpendicular to the axis of movement, which is considered one of the most difficult and spectacular elements. Just as in traditional biathlon, the track includes a 500-meter penalty loop that the participants will have to follow if they miss the target.
Dissolving boundaries between sports and warfare: Russia challenges world in tank biathlon - News - Sports - The Voice of Russia: News, Breaking news, Politics, Economics, Business, Russia, International current events, Expert opinion, podcasts, Vide
