The fifth anniversary professional skills competition, "Best in Profession – Noviy Vtormet Cup 2026," was held as part of the federal stage of the All-Russian Professional Skills Competition. Over the years, it has become a major event aimed at promoting and elevating the prestige of skilled trades. Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus took part in this landmark competition.
The industry competition was organized by SGMK and the "Pro Lom Union" SRO Association of Scrap Processors, with support from Noviy Vtormet.
Sponsors included Tekhnoaviа, a leading Russian manufacturer and supplier of quality workwear, footwear, and personal protective equipment; Megarex, one of Russia's largest specialized suppliers of heavy machinery and equipment for handling and processing scrap, solid waste, and other cargo; and HuaHong-Rus, the official representative of the Chinese industrial group Jiangsu Huahong Technology Stock Co., Ltd. in Russia and the CIS.
Participants in the competition were workers from the scrap processing industry: 8 teams (29 people). They represented the country's largest enterprises: Ashinsky Metallurgical Plant, Belvtorchermet, Vtorresurs-Pererabotka, Nadezhdinsky Metallurgical Plant, Noviy Vtormet Far East, Noviy Vtormet Siberia, the TransLom Group of Companies, and UralMetKom.
The competition was held in four categories – "Crane Operator," "Loader Operator," "Crane-Manipulator Unit (CMU) Truck Driver," and "Flame-Cutting Torch Operator" – in both individual and team standings.
The winners of the "Best in Profession – Noviy Vtormet Cup 2026" competition were:
In the "Crane Operator" category:
– 1st place goes to Svetlana Koorsanina, Ashinsky Metallurgical Plant
– 2nd place goes to Semyon Kookharenko, Nadezhdinsky Metallurgical Plant
– 3rd place goes to Tatiana Prootseva, UralMetKom
In the "Loader Operator" category:
– 1st place goes to Ivan Titarenko, Noviy Vtormet Far East
– 2nd place goes to Mikhail Tikhomirov, TransLom Group
– 3rd place goes to Konstantin Khoodyakov, Noviy Vtormet Siberia
In the "CMU Truck Driver" category:
– 1st place goes to Vladislav Safronov, UralMetKom
– 2nd place goes to Kirill Raikovsky, Noviy Vtormet Siberia
– 3rd place goes to Roman Kovalevsky, Belvtorchermet
In the "Flame-Cutting Torch Operator" category:
– 1st place goes to Alexey Pak, TransLom Group
– 2nd place goes to Ivan Galkovsky, Belvtorchermet
– 3rd place goes to Ivan Verevkin, Nadezhdinsky Metallurgical Plant
Individual winners received prizes: 200,000 rubles for 1st place, 140,000 rubles for 2nd, and 100,000 rubles for 3rd.
In the team standings, the absolute champion was the Noviy Vtormet Siberia team, which received the winner's cup and 1 million rubles.
"SGMK is not just the organizer – it is the driving force behind this competition. In our offices, our employees virtually manage hundreds of thousands of tons of scrap. And I am sincerely glad that today they saw your skills and hard work in person. That's truly awesome! This competition has proven just how impressive and multifaceted our company is. Let's give a big round of applause to our scrap workers," Anton Rybkin, Deputy CEO for Commerce at JSC SGMK, told the audience at the closing ceremony.
Thunderous applause rang out that day in honor of the winners of the "Best in Profession – Noviy Vtormet Cup 2026" competition and the workers of the scrap procurement and processing industry.