TAIF-NK employees in the top of Corporate Cross-Country Race
165 teams participated in the anniversary extreme race
The 5th Corporate Cross-Country Race was held near Kazan, at Lebyazhye park. A record 165 teams from Tatarstan enterprises took part in the anniversary race. Some of the most successful races were shown by TAIF-NK employees. The company was represented by four teams of six people each. Charged with positive energy, drive and sporting spirit, the oil refiners overcame a three-kilometre obstacle course. Read about the secret of success for company workers who seem to be far from sports is in the report of Realnoe Vremya.
“Victories in labour and sports! Hooray! Go ahead!”
Representatives of enterprises and organizations from different parts of Tatarstan gathered for the anniversary Corporate Cross-Country Race — over a thousand people, including fans. Before the start, a sports and entertainment program was organized for the participants. Athletes were able to warm up, do zumba under the guidance of experienced coaches and also play volleyball and have a snack in the food court.
In addition, everyone could take a photo with the legend of Ak Bars club Danis Zaripov. KAMAZ-Master sports trucks were presented in the exhibition photo zone, and young musical and dance groups performed on the stage.
At the beginning of the official part of the opening, head of the administration of the Kirovsky and Moskovsky districts Vladimir Zhavoronkov addressed the participants. According to him, such competitions help improve the atmosphere in work teams.
“We are glad to welcome you to the event called Corporate Cross-Country Race. For the fifth time, this event is taking place on a real pearl — Lake Lebyazhye. We hope you get real pleasure from today not only on the track, but also from the infrastructure that has been prepared for you. Make friends with other teams and feel that very unity, a sense of partnership and closeness. With this feeling, continue your work until the next Corporate Cross-Country Race!” he wished.
Minister of Youth Affairs of the Republic of Tatarstan Rinat Sadykov thanked the partners, including the Kazan mayor's office and the Ministry of Sports of the Republic as well as heads of enterprises and all the participants of the races.
“Today, 800,000 young people work in various sectors of the Tatarstan economy. And the fact that 165 teams registered certainly speaks of the great interest in this project called Corporate Cross-Country Race. I am sure that today you will get both aesthetic and physical pleasure. You will make new friends and contacts, and the strongest will win,” Rinat Sadykov said.
Deputy Minister of Sports of the Republic of Tatarstan Ildar Sadriyev, in turn, noted that the heads of the participating enterprises, like no one else, understand that sports and a healthy lifestyle are important for teams.
“In Tatarstan, every second person is already systematically engaged in physical education and sports. And you are an example of this. I am sure that those of you who have children are a role model for them. Many of you even came with small children — this is wonderful and appreciated! The main thing is to get positive emotions and continue to do sports. Victories in work and sports! Hurray! Go ahead!” he chanted.
“Excellent impressions! The weather is wonderful!”
After the official part of the opening, the most interesting part — the races — began. The participants had to run 3 km, overcoming 14 obstacles of varying difficulty, including monkey bars, crossings, barriers and balancing elements, with a final run up a four-meter-high ramp. The teams were divided into categories: large, medium and small enterprises, as well as non-industrial institutions and government organizations.
TAIF-NK JSC employees were among the first to compete. The four teams included the best-prepared employees. A total of 24 people represented the company. For each of them, sports are not empty words, but the meaning of life.
“In general, I am for any kind of fuss, especially related to sports. I regularly go to the gym. Lately, I have been into jumping. Now we have started more active training in preparation for the corporate Race of Heroes at TAIF-NK. We train with the team twice a week, and, interestingly, anyone can participate in such events,” noted Anna Pilipenko, a software engineer at TAIF-NK JSC.
Another participant from TAIF-NK JSC is head of the labour protection service Rinat Kurmanov. According to him, such events not only support the corporate spirit but also allow you to get to know your colleagues better — in a non-standard environment, human qualities are revealed and it is easier to understand a person.
“As a manager, I try to stay in shape. I like strength training, pull-ups, running, swimming and cycling. I wanted to try my hand and take part in the Corporate Cross-Country Race to feel the team spirit and get positive emotions. Our goal is always to win,” admitted Rinat Kurmanov.
Specialist in contracts from the department of prospective development and technical re-equipment of TAIF-NK JSC Dinara Mukhametova also came to the Corporate Cross-Country Race with great pleasure.
“We have a corporate spirit. Our team actively participates in various competitions. For example, I took part in the Cross of the Nation and the Race of Heroes in Mendeleyevsk. We also have internal corporate events: skiing, table tennis, orienteering. This Saturday, a very interesting outdoor event on SUP boards and kayaks is planned where everyone is participating, even our CEO. As for my participation in the Corporate Cross-Country Race, I decided to try something new, since I had never participated in such an event before. The opportunity to test yourself in an unfamiliar situation is always attractive,” admitted Dinara.
Shift supervisor Artyom Petrov is also sure that corporate sports are important for team building. By the way, he was one of the first to complete the Corporate Cross-Country Race track.
“Excellent impressions! The weather is wonderful, it allowed us to fully enjoy the process. Of course, running in 30-degree heat was a bit tough, but overall I kept up the pace and didn’t feel any significant difficulties. The most interesting challenge for me was crossing the lake on a raft. But the obstacle with the metal pipe that I had to crawl along created certain difficulties — the pipe was heating up in the sun, and it wasn’t very comfortable in shorts. Overall, I was pleased, especially with my team. They showed their best side,” Artyom Petrov praised his colleagues.
All four teams of TAIF-NK JSC showed maximum dedication and gave it their all. During the course, especially in the most difficult sections, the participants supported each other and extended a helping hand. It was the team spirit, cohesion, mutual respect, athletic endurance and passion that became the key to the success of the oil refiners, who entered the top of the strongest participants in the race, taking 12th, 24th, 27th and 59th places out of 78.
New challenges await the employees of TAIF-NK JSC, which means new victories and achievement of sports and production heights.
