how the last day at the Youth Festival did not go according to script and was memorable

On March 6, Russian President Vladimir Putin came to the closing ceremony of the World Youth Festival. Kommersant special correspondent Andrey Kolesnikov looked at both the youth, to whom Vladimir Putin told that the future had begun, and Vladimir Putin himself, and shared his observations of all these people.

The former main media center (MCC) of the 2014 Olympics in Sochi is now the territory of Sirius University. True, here, in the Olympic Park, which is also probably no longer an Olympic Park, but something else, everyone says that this is the State Medical Center, because how can you forget what was here ten years ago?

However, here, among the endless stands on the second floor, there are young people walking around who may not have any impressions from ten years ago at all (and for some time I doubt even ten days ago).

There are hundreds and even thousands of these young people (to be more precise, there are 20 thousand of them in total at the Youth Festival), and you have to be here to appreciate them all. The festival has been going on for a week now, and is about to, in two hours, solemnly close, and they even look tired, but I see that they are not giving up. On the contrary, they lift and stretch somewhere upward. But where exactly? One climbed onto the shoulders of the other and is trying to pull a large and beautiful suitcase magnetized to it from a ribbed metal wall. And he pulls it off and gives it to a girl somewhere down there. And only then do I notice that there are already about fifteen people here with such suitcases. And someone seemed to command them: “Let’s leave!..” – and they disappear into the crowd with these suitcases. I, however, manage to ask one person while running, and he manages to shrug his shoulders:

— The suitcases hung on the wall for a week. And now they told us: we can take it! We took!

Later I understand that the suitcases, magnetized to the wall, were apparently part of a promotion from one bank. And now, perhaps, it’s time to disassemble the exhibition. And they took it apart in an instant.

Several young people make a plea to a correspondent of one of the federal channels, whom they know by sight (however, here, in order to approach a person, you don’t need to know him by sight). These young people are from Serbia, and their plea is that they should give Vladimir Putin an icon, which they always have ready, and here it is – the Serbs are showing. They are counting on a TV correspondent, they have no one else, they cannot return to Serbia with the icon.

Someone’s nose suddenly starts bleeding. One can understand: the program was intense. And a huge anxious crowd leads him and even more likely carries him somewhere… Ah, in search of a first aid station… And all the same, even though there is trouble, there is some kind of enthusiasm in everything, the need to have fun and be cheered…

Here at one of the stands they show Cheburashka in a kimono, whom the manufacturers called Putinyashka – and this, we agree, is risky, on the brink, yes, on the brink, but, it seems, it’s still not for her…

A girl at Rosatom’s stand demonstrates the company’s by-products and asks what it is, pointing at the object with a laser pointer.

“The picker,” one of the spectators reveals knowledge of this subject.

– Wow, no one said that in a week! — the girl rejoices. “Yes, the ear stick is reusable!” And everyone around here is in complete, absolute delight.

And I think about the inexhaustibility of Rosatom, and even more so of the atom itself.

There is a multi-meter samovar, behind which everyone is working on laptops for some reason. Yes, it’s clear why. Some young man is already running between the stands with a bouquet of yellow tulips, that is, in every sense he is running around – as if with a great gift destined for someone, and he is simply running around, unable to stop.

Here, finally, you see the open educational multimedia exhibition project “NATO: a history of deception”, which many have already heard about outside the Olympic Park, and outside Sochi too. The exhibition pavilions are cool and quiet. But this is an alarming and, most importantly, deceptive silence.

Young people walk here almost on tiptoes. Difficult truths are revealed to them, because the sections of the exhibition do not hide anything: “The Essence of NATO.” “NATO’s First Overt Intervention: Yugoslavia”. “Wars between the USA and NATO in the Middle East” (it is probably assumed that the USA sometimes prefers to disgrace itself separately from NATO).

The devastating consequences of such actions are nearby: a dented launch tube of the NLAW anti-tank missile system, a torn apart European drone…

On my way out I receive a postcard with a cartoon of Herluf Bidstrup and shudder at the name, ingrained in my Soviet school childhood. The cartoon, meanwhile, is called as expected: “The Womb of Imperialism.”

There must be Kukryniksy cartoons here somewhere.

I think that these young people will absorb the new culture like sponges and that this is already happening, but then I remember that for us it suddenly ended one day and it seemed that it would never return.

At the exhibition that Vladimir Putin is scheduled to visit, I see many wonderful exhibits. I see a poster “Making strong people even stronger!” and, therefore, the weak – even weaker.

A girl is walking in front of me, and on her sweater it says: Everyone Matters. I understand: this is an alternative and I am aware of what: Black Live Matter (BLM).

The exhibition is designed as a large airport and thus begins with Duty Free. Here are corners of products from companies from Moscow, Sochi and Vladivostok. A young man from Vladivostok shows:

— For example, sweatshirts. You see, on the chest it is written: “Live by the sea.” But it’s simple and clear: “Vladivostok”. Our mayor wears these clothes… but the “Tumany” brand (for some reason, I talk about this with just respect.— A.K.), very promising, by the way, my friend owns, by the way…

It turns out that this day seems to have been overloaded with events at the Bocharov Ruchey residence of Vladimir Putin there was a meeting with IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, another meeting has just begun, and Vladimir Putin is almost out of time for the closing ceremony of the festival, if, as planned, the exhibition, as well as a meeting with Russian students, and then another meeting with foreign students take place, as planned planned before the closing ceremony. 10 thousand people in the Bolshoi Sports Palace do not deserve it, a decision was made to sit and wait for Vladimir Putin for two hours in the stands, so that the exhibition and meetings will take place after the festival closes.

I go out into the common area and again see this causeless and seemingly eternal joy of young people and students, and who said that it is not wonderful?

Moreover, nothing will change for them this evening.

Fairy tales were told at the closing ceremony. The Iranian Pasha, first on the screen and then at the stadium, recalled his childhood and generally talked about his entire life. And it took a long time, and again it took a long time.

The rest were shorter.

A young man from Tanzania said that he was filled with competence, that young people were noisy and that it was his first time seeing Russian ballet.

The Indian starred in a video about the performer of any dream: all that was needed was to open the largest platform of opportunities in the world.

The Argentine spoke about a story of maternal love and hope. The hope was that his mother’s son would go to the festival in Moscow. She herself did not want to go, although he persuaded her. But she had many reasons to refuse.

– Well, mom, what are you saying! – he convinced her. “What flowers, what neighbors, what a cat!.. We will go to Russia!” We will feel the snow touching our palms… You’re just afraid to fly!..

The next shots were from the stadium. Mom finally made it to Sochi. The son announced a song about hope for his mother, and it turned out to be widely known: “An unfamiliar star is shining, again we are torn from home…”. Not the tears on the face of the Olympic bear in 1980, of course, but still.

Vladimir Putin spoke after a girl who masterfully explained herself in sign language (this, however, can sometimes be expected from Vladimir Putin).

– I can help you! — first this girl chanted, and after a few seconds the whole hall chanted.

It was time for the Russian President to appear.

But not yet. The host of the Olympics Teterich said that spring is the time of thaw (you can’t tell). But with the songs in Argentinean, everything was believed.

– So many people! And everyone brought something of their own! – said the presenter. – Meet! President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin!

That is, the Teterich Olympics brought the President of Russia.

– We all people! Yes, we are all equal! And if we are all equal, then there is no place in the world for any exclusivity! – Vladimir Putin spoke about painful issues here too. – We are all equal from the moment of our birth!

And the stadium interrupted him:

– Russia! Russia!

But they were just told that everyone is equal.

– But the question! Are we growing on an equal footing? Unfortunately no. There are no equal conditions for everyone in the world! And this is the main injustice of the structure of the world!.. Is it possible to ensure equal conditions? “I don’t know,” the president unexpectedly admitted.

“But I know for sure that we should all strive for this!”

The note taken did not seem to be the most optimistic.

– I want you to know: all of Russia is now your friend! — the president was apparently addressing foreign participants of the festival. “The future has begun!”

The youth of the planet seemed to not know whether to be happy or sad about this.

Vladimir Putin did not stay long at the exhibition; it was the three girls who were most impressed. They showed their paintings to Vladimir Putin at the exhibition.

– He stood in front of us! – one of them repeated. “He stood in front of us!”

And we could say that it’s the other way around.

I was already leaving the university building when I saw a group of girls in the lobby. They filmed themselves on their phones and chanted:

– We are happy! We are happy! We are happy!

I wasn’t surprised.

Andrey Kolesnikov, Sirius