MINSK, 21 August (BelTA) – Representatives of the Belarusian border service came home with awards after an international canine biathlon competition in Latvia, representatives of the State Border Committee of Belarus told BelTA.
The competition took place at premises of the State Border Guard College in the city of Rezekne, Latvia. The competition featured four events and gathered 90 dog handlers and their dogs. The Belarusian team participated in two events for professionals along with representatives of Latvia, Lithuania, and Moldova.
As part of one event the Belarusian canine specialists had to cross 9km of rough terrain. They had to cross a water obstacle of 200 meters, apprehend border trespassers, shoot guns, and go through mazes and tunnels in addition to climbing stairs. The judges also measured how the dogs responded to commands of their handlers. As a result the Belarusian team came in first in the Professional Class A nomination, with Ruslan Strashkevich as the top dog handler. In the Professional Class B nomination the personal score of the Belarusians Ilya Poprotsky and Diana Pavlinich was the third best.