August 16, 2014 - 16:42 AMT
Armenia wins silver at Russia-hosted 1st Int’l Tank Biathlon

The first International Tank Biathlon completed in Russia, with Armenia taking silver in the competition, Russian media reported.

The competition host won the Biathlon gold, with China gaining a bronze medal. The winners were awarded by the Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu. . The competition, dubbed as the Tank Olympics, saw teams from 12 countries taking part in a racing and shooting contest, much like a standard Olympic biathlon competition.

The event kicked off on August 4 at the Alabino shooting range, on the outskirts of Moscow.

According to the rules, the tanks must negotiate a 20 kilometre course while facing various obstacles, including a slalom section, river shallows, a steep hill, a pontoon bridge and an escarpment, and shoot a set of targets along the way.

The tanks have also been facing obstacles in the way of Russian aircraft and infantry combat vehicles.

The twelve countries participating were Angola, Armenia, Belarus, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Russia, Serbia and Venezuela.