Fate of the Two Lakes Cup Decided by Games on the Ice of Khubsugul

The decisive matches of the Two Lakes Cup International Ball Hockey Tournament took place on the ice of Lake Khubsugul on April 3. The cup was won by the INRTU hockey players. The second place went to the national team of Mongolia. The players from the Republic of Buryatia completed the top three.

The final stage of the tournament was organized in a picturesque place - the Mongolian village of Khankh, overlooking the East Sayan Mountains. The games were preceded by the opening ceremony, which included the national anthems of both countries, the guests of honor, and performances by the INRTU cheerleading team.

INRTU Rector, President of the Student Sports League of Ball Hockey Mikhail Kornyakov wished the hockey players spectacular games:

"Mongolia welcomed us with sunny weather and good ice. We thank the residents of the village of Khankh, who helped to prepare a quality site.

Today the teams from Russia and Mongolia will take the ice and give the fans a real celebration of Russian hockey. The Cup will go to the strongest, but the most important thing at the tournament is the friendship between the two countries".

The first team to meet on the ice of Khubsugul was INRTU and the Mongolian team. The game ended with the score 11:8 in favor of the Irkutsk team. The Mongolian team was supported from the stands by Otgonbayar, General Secretary of the Mongolian Ball and Puck Hockey Federation and Deputy General Director of the Sports Complex of the Erdenet Mine.

"Last year and in the first stage of the current Cup, our team finished in third place. Today we want to improve the result. It is significant that the international tournament is being held on the ice of Lake Baikal and Khubsugul. It not only helps to strengthen friendly relations, but also draws attention to the protection of these beautiful lakes," says Otgonbayar.

Then Irkutsk and Buryatia took the field. The players gave the fans two exciting halves. After the first half the Buryat team corrected their mistakes and gave a good fight to the INRTU students throughout the match. In the second half the teams equalized the score - 8:8. The outcome of the game was decided in the last minutes when Irkutsk scored the winning goal.

Semyon Potylitsyn, the forward of the INRTU team, shared his impressions of the tournament:

"In the match against the Mongolian national team I played as a goalkeeper for the first time. It is very responsible to take such a position, some goals could not be reflected. Nevertheless, our team won. We gained invaluable experience playing with foreign hockey players".

The next match determined which team would take second and third place in the international tournament. In the beginning, the national team of the Buryat Republic played a good game. However, the Mongolian hockey players did not want to give up the "silver medal" and strengthened their work both in defense and offense. The match ended with a score of 8:4 in favor of the Mongolian team.

Ivan Kozyrev, Minister of Sport and Youth Policy of the Republic of Buryatia, was the guest of honor and emphasized the importance of the tournament: 

"Sport has always acted as a link, uniting countries and peoples. I would like to thank INRTU for this initiative. There is no doubt that the Two Lakes Cup should be held every year and become part of the international competition network".

The tournament became a real celebration for the residents of the village of Khankh and tourists who watched the matches with interest.

At the prize-giving ceremony, Mikhail Kornyakov congratulated the medalists and presented commemorative cups to Ivan Kozyrev, Minister of Sport and Youth Policy of the Republic of Buryatia, Otgonbayar, General Secretary of the Mongolian Ball and Puck Hockey Federation, and Dorzhi, a resident of the village of Khankh.

The Two Lakes Cup is held for the second year as part of the Student Sports Ball Hockey League. It is timed to coincide with the 43rd anniversary of the flight of the Soviet-Mongolian crew into space. The head of the organizing committee of the tournament is the first cosmonaut of Mongolia Zhugdardemidijin Gurragcha, who in 1981 together with Vladimir Dzhanibekov made a flight on the spacecraft "Soyuz-39".

The Cup is included in the calendar of sports events of the Ministry of Sports of the Russian Federation. The tournament is supported by the Russian Student Sports Union, the Student Sports Union of Mongolia, the Government of the Buryat Republic represented by the Minister of Sports and Youth Policy Ivan Kozyrev.

The first stage of the Cup was held on March 6 on the ice of Lake Baikal near the village of Maximikha (Buryat Republic). In addition, the program of the tournament was supplemented by the ascent of Russian and Mongolian students to Munku-Sardyk. On the summit they raised the national flags of both countries and made contact with Zhugdardemidijn Gurragcha.