60 management teams of the country become winners of the sixth season of the "Leaders of Russia" competition

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On 15 June, winners of the sixth season of the "Leaders of Russia" national management competition were announced at the National Centre RUSSIA. This contest is the flagship project of the presidential platform "Russia – Land of Opportunity". Sixty management teams from 33 regions of Russia were named winners. They will receive the opportunity to undertake a specialised educational programme in team-building developed jointly by the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA) and the Senezh Management Workshop. The results of the final assessment stage were approved by the competition's Supervisory Board. The winners will also qualify for the superfinal, which will take place in autumn 2026. This announcement was made by Sergei Kiriyenko, First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office of the Russian Federation and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the "Leaders of Russia" national management competition.

Sergei Kiriyenko congratulated the finalists and winners of the sixth season, noting that the competition had been held in a team format for the first time. He also said that the Supervisory Board had decided that all winners will be eligible to compete in the superfinal in autumn 2026. The First Deputy Chief of Staff described it as symbolic that the winners were honoured at the National Centre RUSSIA.

"More than eight years ago, the "Leaders of Russia" competition was launched on the instructions of our President, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, and we could never have imagined that it would grow to such a scale. By the fifth season, we had surpassed one million participants from 150 countries around the world. This is a unique talent pool. Over the years, 17,000 semi-finalists and finalists have undergone in-depth professional assessments by experts and received valuable recommendations, support and guidance from leading specialists in education, professional development and management. During these eight years, 700 winners have gone on to hold a wide range of senior positions: governors, city mayors, deputy ministers, federal and regional ministers, and executives of major Russian corporations. An important confirmation of the winners' quality is that their career progression continues not only immediately after victory, but years later as well. Today, the world is changing, and no one can achieve success alone any longer. Success belongs to management teams. That is why this time we faced an especially challenging task set by the President — to create a competition not for individuals, but for teams. No one in the world has done this before. A total of 75,000 managers from Russia and 66 foreign countries applied to take part in "Leaders of Russia. Team". This year's final featured a record number of participants — 1,400 people forming 280 teams. Fifteen teams in each category have been declared winners. All of them will take part in the major superfinal this autumn. Our competition is called "Leaders of Russia. Team" because we are all one team: the President's team, the country's team," said Sergei Kiriyenko.

Andrei Betin, Director General of the Presidential Platform "Russia – Land of Opportunity" and Rector of the Senezh Management Workshop, stressed that the sixth season of the contest had made it possible to assess participants' managerial potential in a new way.

"Talent, hard work and service always find their way. But even the brightest talent gains real strength only within a team. The sixth season of "Leaders of Russia" became our response to the challenges of the times. We received 75,000 applications, formed 6,576 teams and welcomed 1,400 finalists from 70 regions of Russia —these are record figures for the competition. Women accounted for 44 percent of participants, and this is the highest proportion in the competition's history. For the first time in the final, we held a management dictation test consisting of 50 questions to be completed in 20 minutes, with participants choosing their level of risk and losing points for incorrect answers. We also introduced GTO physical fitness standards completed in mixed teams, because a strong leader is a healthy leader. Today, the Supervisory Board approved 60 winning teams — 15 in each of the four categories. The main conclusion of this season is that victory belongs not to the loudest voice, but to those who work with their team to find the best solution. Russia is strong because of its teams, and the finalists of the sixth season are the best proof of that," said Andrei Betin.

Overall, 60 management teams were named winners of the sixth season. Fifteen teams triumphed in each of the competition's four categories: "Government Management Teams", "Corporate Management Teams", "Organisational Management Teams", and "Mixed Management Teams".

The winners represented 33 regions of Russia. The largest number came from Moscow (153 people), followed by the Moscow Region (23), the city of St Petersburg (14), and the Ryazan and Sverdlovsk regions (nine each). They came from a wide range of sectors, most notably public administration (60 people), industry (58), banking (33), education (20), and transport and road infrastructure (16).

The season's results were approved during a meeting of the competition's Supervisory Board held prior to the awards ceremony. Participants included members of the Board: Nikita Anisimov, Rector of the Higher School of Economics; Svetlana Zhurova, Deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation; Alexei Komissarov, Rector of the Presidential Academy; four-time Olympic champion Alexei Nemov; two-time Olympic champion Svetlana Khorkina; and Konstantin Remchukov, Director General and Editor-in-Chief of Nezavisimaya Gazeta newspaper.

The final of "Leaders of Russia. Team", organised by the Presidential Platform "Russia – Land of Opportunity", took place from 9 to 15 June. At the Senezh Management Workshop, participants completed assessment exercises specially designed for the competition's new team-based format. Finalist teams demonstrated their ability to analyse information collectively, make management decisions, distribute responsibilities and propose practical solutions to socially significant challenges.

Team-building through sport formed a special part of the final stage. During the final stage, participants completed elements of the "Ready for Labour and Defence" (GTO) physical fitness standards and, after returning home and completing the remaining requirements, will be eligible to receive official distinctions – the GTO badges. A total of 1,209 contestants completed the GTO standards. Of these, 210 qualified for the gold badge, 261 for silver and 245 for bronze.

More than 75,000 executives from all 89 regions of Russia and 66 foreign countries took part in the sixth season of "Leaders of Russia. Team". To reach the final, participants successfully progressed through remote stages, testing and online semi-finals. Alongside the assessments, finalists completed GTO standards and participated in an educational programme delivered by leading management experts in science and education. In total, 1,400 managers forming 280 teams reached the final stage.

Assessment exercises for the "Organisational Management Teams" and "Mixed Management Teams" categories took place on 9 and 10 June, while finalists in the "Government Management Teams" and "Corporate Management Teams" categories were assessed on 12 and 13 June.

The "Leaders of Russia" management competition, part of the Presidential Platform "Russia – Land of Opportunity", has been held since 2017 by order of the President of the Russian Federation. Over the course of all seasons, more than one million applications have been submitted from across Russia and from 150 countries worldwide. More than 700 participants have gone on to receive appointments to senior positions. The competition is implemented as part of the federal project "Russia – Land of Opportunity" and the national project "Youth and Children".