Following the results of the fifth day of the BRICS Games, Russia topped the medal standings with 239 medals. Of these, 112 were gold, 78 silver and 49 bronze. Belarus takes the second place (19-36-39). China (17-11-8) was third, Iran (4-10-15) was fourth, Uzbekistan (3-7-18) was fifth and Brazil (2-2-8) was sixth. India were ranked seventh (1-3-10), Egypt were 17th (0-1-4), South Africa were 20th (0-1-0) and UAE were 29th (0-0-1).

The first five days of the Games featured events in athletics, badminton, synchronised swimming, artistic gymnastics, rowing, karate, table tennis, weightlifting, wushu, sambo, wrestling, basketball, diving and tennis.

“We had seen the Cuban team before and realised that they would beat us on the court, so we tried our best to develop an advantage in the digital phase and we succeeded. Further on the court, we just tried to keep the gap,” Brazilian national basketball player Luiz Guilherme Matos shared his impressions from one of the matches.

“Venezuela is a country where they love weightlifting. It was important for me to get to the BRICS Games and perform in Russia. I have many friends from your country. The impressions are the most amazing. Everything is great here. I didn’t even expect it to be like this. When I performed, I remembered my coach, who passed away 5 years ago. He meant a lot to me,” said Jeyson Alonso Arias Mosquera, a weightlifter from Venezuela and bronze medallist at the BRICS Games.

The BRICS Sports Games kicked off in Kazan, the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan, on 12 June. They will last until 23 June. About 4,000 participants from more than 90 countries are taking part in the event. Awards will be given in 27 disciplines.

The BRICS Games are annual multi-sport competitions. As a rule, the event is organised by the country chairing the BRICS association for a year. In 2024, Russia will have this right.

Photo: bricskazan2024.games