From August 24 to 28, the Country Cup in sports orienteering returned to Moscow after a multi-year hiatus. The last time Russia hosted this event was in Perm back in 2012. Twelve years later, the competition in Deaf sports resumed, this time in the capital region.
Twenty-eight men and twenty women from seven regions participated, including the Republic of Bashkortostan, Perm Krai, Krasnodar Krai, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Moscow Oblast, St. Petersburg, Moscow, and the Republic of Belarus. Athletes competed in sprint, classic, and long-distance disciplines.
The competition kicked off with a sprint: men covered a challenging 3-kilometer course with 14 checkpoints, while women tackled a slightly shorter 2.5-kilometer route with 13 checkpoints. Moscow's Ravil Iniiatullin and Mariia Novikova from Moscow Oblast emerged victorious in the sprint event. Iniiatullin, familiar with the terrain, described the race as demanding yet engaging due to the intricacies of the maps.
Final race results.

Women	Men
1. Mariia Novikova (Moscow Oblast)	1. Ravil Iniiatullin (Moscow)
2. Mariia Iudina (St. Petersburg)	2. Nikita Smirnov (Moscow Oblast)
3. Tatiana Konkova (St. Petersburg)	3. Pavel Novikov (Moscow Oblast)

The second day of competition in the Classic discipline was a true test for the competitors, who had to battle not only the course but also their own endurance. Ravil Iniiatullin from Moscow once again triumphed with a time of 44:38, while Mariia Novikova from Moscow Oblast secured her second gold medal with a time of 38:33.

Women	Men
1. Mariia Novikova (Moscow Oblast)	1. Ravil Iniiatullin (Moscow)
2. Mariia Iudina (St. Petersburg)	2. Pavel Novikov (Moscow Oblast)
3. Tatiana Konkova (St. Petersburg)	3. Nikita Smirnov (Moscow Oblast)

On the third day, Mariia Iudina from St. Petersburg impressed with a remarkable performance in the long-distance event, finishing in 1:06:50 ahead of Mariia Novikova by a mere 2 seconds. Pavel Novikov from Moscow Oblast claimed victory in the men's category, interrupting Iniiatullin's streak, with Pavel Bibich from St. Petersburg securing bronze. The only Belarusian competitor Olga Rogovtseva, who competed in the difficult long course discipline, took the honourable fifth place.

Women	Men
1. Mariia Iudina (St. Petersburg)	1. Pavel Novikov (Moscow Oblast)
2. Mariia Novikova (Moscow Oblast)	2. Ravil Iniiatullin (Moscow)
3. Tatiana Konkova (St. Petersburg)	3. Pavel Bibich (St. Petersburg)

St. Petersburg led the team standings, followed by Moscow and Moscow Oblast.

Photo album and final video review of the competition

Text: Mariia Mazhenina, Andrei Popov
Photo: Olga Zakharova
Translation: Daria Kudelina