February 13, 2015. All the preparations for the Russian Classic hockey game that is to take place at Uralvagonzavod Corporation’s head plant’s stadium on February 14 are complete in Nizhniy Tagil. Nizhniy Tagil’s Sputnik will play against Yuzhniy Ural from Orsk.

‘Russian Classic is more than a grand hockey match. This is a performance that is meant to show Nizhniy Tagil as a city where serious and positive changes are taking place. Nizhniy Tagil has always been keen on sports: take, for example, the successful round of the World Cup Ski Jumping Championship, as well as the upcoming hockey game. I know the locals are looking forward to seeing the match, and I am confident the event organization is top-rate,’ Mayor of Nizhniy Tagil Sergey Nosov said at a press conference.

Chairman of Sputnik Hockey Club Board of Trustees and Deputy Director-General of Uralvagonzavod Corporation Alexei Zharich said all the things necessary to get ready for the game had been done. The football stadium got adjusted to a hockey game and all the repairs were done very quickly.

‘The city dwellers are obviously quite interested in the event: only 900 out of 7,000 tickets are still available for purchase, even though most locals prefer to buy the tickets on the day of the game itself. I see a good reason for the game to be held at a football pitch: there will be many more spectators there than our Ice Sports Palace can fit,’ he said.

This year, Russian Classic is dedicated to the 70th anniversary of Russia’s victory in the Great Patriotic War. This is going to become the first of the many events Uralvagonzavod and Nizhniy Tagil are coordinating to celebrate the anniversary: there will be Russian Classic in the winter, V-Day Parade in the spring, and an arms exhibition in the fall. May 9 is the corporation’s most important holiday in the entire year, particularly because the company is working hard to support the national defense capacity,’ Uralvagonzavod Corporation’s press service reports.