MOSCOW, June 11. /TASS/. The BRICS Games is an annual multi-sports tournament organized by the country that holds the rotating chair in the organization. Athletes from other countries besides the BRICS member states (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) will for the first time ever take part in the BRICS Games at this year’s event in Kazan, Russia.
History of the BRICS Games
Paving the way for the BRICS Games was an Under-17 (U17) football tournament organized by the Indian state of GOA in October 2016. The youth football matches were hosted by the cities of Margao and Bambolim. The national teams of Russia, Brazil, India, China and South Africa each played one match against each other. Following four matches, the teams that finished 3rd and 4th in points played a game to determine the eventual 3rd place winner, while the teams that took 1st and 2nd played for the champion’s title. Brazil eventually won the tournament beating South Africa 5-1 in the final, while Russia took third by defeating China 2-1.
The inaugural BRICS Games were held in June 2017 in Ganghzou, China. The program of the tournament included Wushu, men’s basketball and women’s volleyball. Some 300 athletes representing Russia, Brazil, India, China and South Africa participated in that tournament. The Russian side won the basketball and volleyball competitions. Athletes from China dominated in Wushu competitions.
The next edition of the BRICS Games was held in South Africa’s Johannesburg in July 2018 and its program included competitions in men’s volleyball (won by Russia), women’s volleyball (won by China) and women’s football (won by Brazil).
The BRICS Games were not held in 2019, when Brazil held the rotating chair in the organization.
In 2020, Russia chaired the association and planned to hold the BRICS Games in the city of Chelyabinsk putting six sports competitions on the list of the tournament’s schedule (3x3 Basketball, Boxing, Women’s Volleyball, Table Tennis, Sambo wrestling and Wushu). However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the BRICS Games were at first postponed from June to September and later canceled altogether.
India presided over BRICS in 2021, but the BRICS Games were not organized for safety reasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2022 BRICS Games were organized in an online format by China, which presided over the association that year. The program of the tournament included online chess matches, break dancing and Wushu (participants in both competitions were judged by video clips they sent). A total of 42 sets of medals were handed out and Russia finished 1st in the overall medals standings followed by China and India.
2023 BRICS Games
The 2023 BRICS Games were held in Durban, South Africa, between October 18 and 21. The program of the tournament included competitions in swimming, tennis, badminton, beach volleyball, table tennis as well as various competitions for disabled athletes (wheelchair tennis and wheelchair table tennis).
Up to 450 athletes from Russia, Brazil, India, China and South Africa participated in the tournament, where Russia was represented by 34 athletes.
The Russian team again finished first in the overall medal standings having won 59 medals (35 gold, 12 silver and 12 bronze medals), followed by the Chinese national team with 55 medals (19-22-14) in 2nd place and South African team in 3rd place with 51 medals (9-22-20).
2024 BRICS Games
The 2024 BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) Games will be held in Kazan on June 12-23 and will feature events in 27 different sports.
The program of the upcoming tournament features Rhythmic Gymnastics, Fencing, Synchronized Swimming, Judo, Diving, Badminton, Karate, Wrestling, Sambo, Wushu, Koresh Belt Wrestling and other competitions.
Russian silver medalist in gymnastics at the 1996 Olympic Games Yana Batyrshina and Turkish football star Gokdeniz Karadeniz, who used to play midfield for Russia’s Kazan Rubin football club, have been named ambassadors of the 2024 BRICS Games in Russia.
In mid-May 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the government to submit proposals for organizing and holding the 2024 BRICS Games in Russia.
Oleg Matytsin, who served as the Russian sports minister at that time, emphasized later that the BRICS Games were not meant to rival any other competitions and would not interfere with the international sports calendar as well as with the IOC-approved calendar of events.
In April, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov paid an official visit to China, where he stated that the 2024 BRICS Games and the following World Friendship Games in Russia would be organized based on the principles enshrined by International Olympic Committee (IOC) Charter.