Putin to Revive Sports Units in Russian Army

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Putin to Revive Sports Units in Russian Army - Sputnik International
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President Vladimir Putin is bringing back dedicated sports units in the Russian Army to satisfy the draft requirement while protecting future champions from the full rigors of military service.

MOSCOW, December 11 (R-Sport) – President Vladimir Putin is bringing back dedicated sports units in the Russian Army to satisfy the draft requirement while protecting future champions from the full rigors of military service.

Sports units were the common in the Soviet Army and included only high-profile athletes who were exempt from ordinary service. "The Ministry of Defense should form army sports units with a minimum manpower of 400 people," Putin said in comments published on the Kremlin website Tuesday.

This will allow the army to fully accommodate "candidates for the Russian national teams in Olympic sports," Putin said.

As was the case in the Soviet era, coaches are to comprise lists of promising youth athletes who are eligible for the draft between the ages of 18 and 27 and submit them to the Defense Ministry.

The names are then sent to military enlistment offices throughout the country.

Putin gave new Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu until February 25 to establish the initiative.

CSKA Moscow was the biggest Soviet military sports unit, the name translating as Central Sports Club of the Army. Today, the football, basketball, and hockey clubs that carry the name have no other association with the military and are funded privately.

In other towns and cities, the abbreviation SKA was used, which is retained in the name of the top hockey team from St. Petersburg.

Last month, wrestler Roman Vlasov raised eyebrows by entering army service after winning a gold medal at the London Olympics.

Russia has a mandatory draft system where all able-bodied men of the correct age must do a 12-month stint. Draft-dodging is common practice, with potential recruits scared off by poor living conditions, low wages and systemic hazing.

One of Putin's pet projects in his third term as president is to restore the country's sporting might, which was lost with the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991.

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