About 20 thousand people take part in 2015 Cross of Nation in Kazan

On September 27, main starts of the national running day, Cross of Nation 2015, was held in Kazan. Races, becoming a tradition for thousands of people, were held on the territory of the Kazan-Arena stadium.

Deputy Prime Minister of Tatarstan Vasily Shaykhraziev, Director of the department of physical culture and sports development under the Russian Ministry of Sports Marina Tomilova, First Tatarstan Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports Khalil Shaikhutdinov welcomed the participants of the cross.

"We take part in these starts for some years and it is amazing that entire Tatarstan is involved in this event. Today, almost 250 thousand Tatarstan residents participated in the 2015 Cross of Nation. It is a great thing that other 84 cities also take part in this sporting event, a total of one million Russians will run and play sports," Shaykhraziev said during the official opening ceremony.

He recalled that going in for sports had become fashionable today. Kazan has confirmed it rightfully winning the title of county’s sports capital.

That days, athletics starts began early in the morning and were held in several categories: professional athletes (12, 8, 6, 4 and 2 km), veterans’ race, traditional family races (500 meters), VIP-races (2 km ) and, of course, mass starts (2 km), which was attended by about 20 thousand Kazans from all regions.

Participants included students of youth sports schools, students of higher and secondary special educational institutions, employees of state and public organizations. Families, consisting of mom, dad, 6-8 years old and 10-11 years old children, were allowed to starts.

It is worth noting that a great family activities were conducted near Kazan-Arena. In anticipation of the start, participants were entertained by colorful performances of creative dance and vocal bands.

The winners were awarded with medals and winner’s cup and pleasant gifts from the event official sponsors and partners.

A family Karimovs claimed the first position in the family race, by the way, repeatedly gaining almost all sports family event.

It should be recalled that the national running day, Cross of Nation, is a significant event in the social life of the country. On this day, sports fans, veterans, people with disabilities and all those, who values healthy lifestyle, start out along with professional athletes. The most large-scale mass sports event of summer sports was held in 84 cities across the country.