Today, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan was present at the awarding ceremony of the amateur cross-country running tournament "RA Prime Minister's Cup" in Etchmiadzin.

The tournament was held on the section of the road covering the Parakar-Ejmiatsin highway of the Armavir region, with three age groups and a separate group of athletes. 1st age group: schoolchildren aged 15-17, 2nd: women aged 18-35 and men aged 18-40, 3rd: women aged over 36 and men aged over 41, a separate group of athletes RA citizens engaged in athletics without age limit. Schoolchildren competed in 2 km, and other age groups in a 10 km obstacle race. The total number of participants was 1400.

The participants who won the 1st, 2nd and 3rd places in the mentioned groups were awarded appropriate certificates, cups, and medals from the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports. The students who took 1-3 places in the 1st age group were also awarded computers, and the participants who took 1-20 locations in the 2nd, 3rd, and individual athlete groups were awarded cash prizes. 2 foreign participants from the Russian Federation were also awarded.

The awards were presented by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Chief of the Prime Minister's Office Arayik Harutyunyan, Minister of GCMS Vahram Dumanyan, Minister of Health Anahit Avanesyan, Deputy Minister of MESCS Karen Giloyan, the Armavir Region Governor Edward Hovhannisyan, Head of Vagharshapat community Diana Gasparyan.

The Prime Minister presented awards to the 1st-3rd place participants in the men's 18-40 age group, as well as souvenirs and diplomas to the two oldest participants, Manya Margaryan and Hakob Tutunjyan, who overcame the entire distance.

Prime Minister Pashinyan made a speech in which he specifically stated:

"Dear attendees, this tournament of ours is taking place for the second year, and before coming here, I was thinking about what I should say because times are not ordinary, and in these extraordinary times, we must be able to have such extraordinary tournaments as well. Implement. But it is also important that what we say is accurate and adequate, and when I was thinking about what to say, I remembered Hrant Matevosyan's story "Our Run." I reread it - by the way, it's perfect that it is available on the Internet - and I noted that although the story was written at a different time and in a different environment, it has not lost its relevance.

The depth and content of the story "Our run," written by Hrant Matevosyan, also expresses our today's run. It is a work that represents our pains, our tragedies, our goals, and our determination to achieve our goals. Our goal is a free, powerful, and happy Armenia, a sovereign, independent, safe Armenia. On this path of our walk, our run, we must, against everything, be more and more determined. From time to time, we will walk; from time to time, we will run; and from time to time, we will stop to think and reflect, but our progress will not and will not be stopped by anything.

I want to give a special thanks to all the participants who consistently strengthen this idea and this tournament with their participation. I also consider it very important that, every year, we clarify the organizational nuances and correct the mechanisms so that the game named "President's Cup" really makes physical culture and sports more and more popular in the Republic of Armenia.

Since the story "Our Run" is about the running of schoolchildren, I would also like to record that the prizes of our school group were significantly less, but we won the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places of our prize winners, both girls, and boys. We will equalize the prize award with other groups.

Of course, we see, and it is pleasant that non-citizens of the Republic of Armenia, foreign citizens, also participate. We should also create such a tournament group with appropriate prize funds.

Dear friends, I want to thank all the organizers, sponsors, and those who support our tournament organization, our Police, and other services. I want to thank the mayor of Echmiadzin, the municipality, and the residents of Echmiadzin for not being upset that the roads were closed for several hours. Such events bring a new atmosphere and attention to the city, and we also enjoy visiting Etchmiadzin, at least on these occasions.

Thank you again, and congratulations to all of you. And I record that our course for the sake of the Republic of Armenia is unstoppable. Thank you":

In total, five tournaments were held within the framework of the "Cup of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia" series in 2022. The amateur cross-country race is the final tournament of the President's Cup series this year.