– First of all, the competition is aimed at preserving and promoting the Russian language abroad. Because our culture and language will always remain a connecting link between our compatriots, wherever they may be, – stated Elena Sutorina, Chair of the Commission of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation for the Development of Public Diplomacy and Support for Compatriots Abroad, at the award ceremony.
The results of the competition were announced on November 10 at the State Museum of A.S. Pushkin (Moscow). Young prose writers and poets from the CIS countries and neighboring states, writing their works in Russian, were awarded within the framework of the competition. Artem Hegai from Kyrgyzstan took first place in the 'Prose' nomination, Levon Shakhnazaryan from Armenia came in second, and Sasha Mindoriani from Moldova took third place. In the 'Poetry' nomination, the best were Tatiana Kupriyanets from Belarus, Elina Ermilova from Latvia, and Kanat Kulakhmetov from Kazakhstan. A special prize was awarded to Ukrainian writer Svetlana Medvedeva.
As reported by IA, Bishkek author Artem Hegai submitted five stories of various genres to the competition, but the best among them turned out to be the work 'Onion', written in the genre of social science fiction.
– The 'Russian Speech' competition was held at the highest level. The jury included such authoritative figures as Leonid Slutsky, Chairman of the State Duma Committee for CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration, and Ties with Compatriots Abroad; Alexander Brechalov, Secretary of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation; Elena Sutorina, Chair of the Commission of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation for the Development of Public Diplomacy and Support for Compatriots Abroad; Andrei Dementyev, member of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation, poet, and laureate of the State Prize; and Anatoly Salutskiy, First Deputy Chairman of the Board of the International Public Fund 'Russian Peace Fund', writer, and academician of the Academy of Russian Literature, – reported IA the winner of the competition in the 'Prose' nomination. – I am very glad that compatriots are given the opportunity to express themselves and share their creativity. This is very valuable for writers!
It should be noted that the winners of 'Russian Speech' were awarded diplomas and cash prizes: first place – 100,000 rubles; second – 80,000; third – 60,000.
According to the head of the Public Chamber's Office, Sergey Smirnov, the 'Russian Speech' competition was a priority for the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation in the Year of Literature. He also added that thanks to such events, "new stars and shining talents appear in contemporary Russian literature."
The award ceremony was also accompanied by a concert of classical music performed by the Symphony Orchestra of Radio and Television, soloists from the Bolshoi Theatre, the Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko Musical Theatre, and the Chamber Musical Theatre named after Pokrovsky.