BRICS Games at INRTU: Mini Football, Sack Race, Tug-of-War and Lapta

BRICS Games sports event was held for the first time at the INRTU stadium on May 31. The tournament attracted students of the Baikal School of BRICS from Russia, China, Ghana, Yemen, Tunisia and other countries.

The organizers of the project are the Department of Youth Policy, Sports Committee of INRTU and the Coordination Center of the university.

According to Anna Kireenko, Director of the Baikal School of BRICS, the event aims at improving intercultural communication among the students of INRTU:

“During the academic year we hold a series of projects for our international students. In winter, we organized an International Food Festival. In May we organized an intellectual tournament “Scientists of Russia”. Such projects help students adapt to Russian universities and find new friends.”

Xia Shuang, Assistant to the Rector for Chinese direction, addressed the participants of the games:

“I wish you to have a good time. Sporting events are necessary in student life. They allow you to keep the spirit up and improve your health.”

Before the start, a group of Indonesian students in traditional Papuan costumes performed an etude to the song “Indonesia” for the participants.

Then the INRTU students competed in team trials. Students had to show their skills in mini football and tug-of-war. The sack races became especially entertaining. At one of the locations, participants were offered to play lapta, a folk pastime with a bat and a ball.

At the end of the event, three leaders were chosen and awarded with gifts from INRTU. The team “Express” was recognized as the most sporty. The second line of the table was taken by “Soyuz”. The third place was won by “Tundra”.

Pavel Sobolev, a first-year student of the Baikal School of BRICS, who is studying artificial intelligence and computer science, shared his impressions of the games:

“Systematic sports activities helped our team to perform well at the competitions. For example, I used to practice judo for a long time, and now I am interested in bodybuilding.

I like studying at INRTU as there are a lot of interesting events here. I consider the opportunity to study in English-language programs to be a key advantage of the university. During my first year I significantly improved my English and got to know people from other countries.”

As part of the sporting event, Ilya Kruchinin, Deputy Director for International Cooperation of the Baikal School of BRICS, awarded international students who took part in the Russian language dictation.