Profil (Moscow) – March 3, 2008

On February 20, Petrovsky Hall of the Grand Kremlin Palace threw its doors open for the Person of the Year International Awards ceremony organized by RBC. The event’s guests and participants included famous politicians, businessmen, prominent figures in culture and the arts, and well-known public figures. While waiting for the official ceremony to get started, the guests drank champagne, discussed the latest news and praised the organizers for such a great opportunity to socialize. “The award is very much needed: it is vital to draw the line, to discuss, to look back. It is very important for people who have achieved a certain status in various spheres to get together, and that is one of the awards’ tasks,” State Duma deputy Alexei Mitrofanov said: “Just have a look at who has come here: you can see governors, State Duma members, major businessmen. It is extremely important for Moscow to offer convenient formats of communication for decision-makers.”

And indeed, there were many familiar faces among the guests and participants of the celebrations held in the Kremlin, from both the government and the business community, including Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Zhukov (awarded “For a Contribution to Russia's Winning Bid to Host Olympics in Sochi), Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov (winner as Person in State Administration), First Deputy Mayor of Moscow Yury Roslyak (awarded “For a Contribution to the Dynamic Growth of Moscow’s Economy”), head of the Russian Post Andrei Kazmin (Banker of the Year), Chairman of Supreme Arbitration Court of Russia Anton Ivanov (“For a Contribution to Developing the Legal Environment for Economic Freedoms”), chairman of the board of directors of Troika Dialog Investment Company Andrei Sharonov, deputy speaker of the Federation Council Dmitry Mezentsev, people’s artist of the U.S.S.R. Galina Vishnevskaya, chairman of the board of directors of Wimm-Bill-Dann David Yakobashvili, rector of the Finance Economy Alla Gryaznova, and other celebrities. The Person of the Year award is considered one of the most significant trophies in modern Russia, and for good reason. It is granted to those whose professional achievements have made a considerable contribution to our country’s development over the past year.

“Efficiency and achievement – these are the two criteria for short listing candidates for the Person of the Year,” RBC’s General Director Yury Rovensky said, adding: “The winners were picked from among those officials, businesspeople, and public figures whose performance best complied with the criteria.” General Director of the Center for Political Technologies Igor Bunin noted that the award was important not only for particular figures who have achieved success, but also for society as a whole. “It is difficult for us to determine somebody’s status,” he said, “as we do not keep records of our ancestry, nor do diplomas matter much, so we have to establish some criteria by which to define a person’s status.”

Chairman of the board of directors of Troika Dialog Investment Company Andrei Sharonov regretted that the award’s format (as it distinguishes people by judging only the past year’s results) did not give enough chances to honor all of those who truly deserved it. “There is every reason to believe that the start of the economic boom of the early 2000s can largely be credited to Yegor Gaidar, who worked some ten years before,” he explained. “He is not a person of the year, but of the decade. And, evidently, some time will have to pass until the results will be fully appreciated.”

Many of the people gathered in Petrovsky Hall noted that it was far easier to distinguish the outstanding achievements in business than in politics. The opinion was illustrated by the expert council’s decision not to announce any winner in the Person in Politics category, for the first time in the award’s history of seven years. “We have witnessed an overly eventful political cycle, but we all know who the Person in Politics was,” the host Svyatoslav Belza said commenting on the jury’s decision.

Meanwhile, many guests and participants opined that elections may come and go, but there would still be worthy candidates for the title. Alexei Mitrofanov stated: “This has been the year of two people, President Medvedev, who has quite obviously come to the fore, and Viktor Zubkov, who had previously only been known to a very narrow circle.” Director of the Institute for Globalization Studies Mikhail Delyagin, in turn, touted Sergei Arakcheyev. Igor Bunin spoke of Dmitry Medvedev as an “indispensable figure,” and also mentioned Vladimir Putin, even though the rules dictate that an incumbent president cannot be pronounced the winner. “If we could nominate the president, I would do it, because all the other people are simply those whose strings are being pulled. And these two are the real participants in the process.”

The ceremony in no way resembled a dreary official event, as the guests assembled in Petrovsky Hall of the Grand Kremlin Palace were clearly telling jokes and enjoying themselves. TV presenter Nikolai Drozdov featly hummed the March of Enthusiasts, and the audience burst into applause and caught up with the line, “We have no barriers either in sea or on land.” The public also expected Iosif Kobzon (Person in Culture) and Dima Bilan (Person in Show Business) to sing. However, they were both very serious and preferred to simply thank the expert council. “I have been serving my country for 70 years,” Iosif Kobzon said, “and I am honored to find myself among such distinguished people.”

Handing out the trophy to coach and consultant of the Russian national figure skating team Tatiana Tarasova (Person in Sports), songwriter Ilya Reznik read out his poem to her. A gift from the award’s partner, the jewelry company Estet - a diamond pendant – was also a pleasant surprise for Tatiana Tarasova. Another partner of the award, the Hennessy Cognac House, congratulated Grand Prix winners with its signature beverage (this year, Grand Prix trophies were conferred to four people: Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov, the founder of Metalloinvest Alisher Usmanov, General Director of Aeroflot – Russian Airlines Valery Okulov, and chairman of Nemiroff Holding’s board of directors Alexander Glus).

All the offhand gags and departures did not detract harmony and logic from the ceremony, however. Keeping with tradition, the society and politics awards were announced first, followed by winners in the business and special categories, with Grand Prix awards coming last. The winners were united not only in expressing their gratitude to the expert council, but also in saying warm words about their colleagues. “The award is an acknowledgement for the whole staff of the Foreign Ministry, which is making its best efforts to pursue the course outlined by our president,” Sergei Lavrov announced. “It will serve as further inspiration to work.”

Some of the winners added advertising to their words of gratitude. “The award has an undisputable advantage: it gives an incentive for further improvement and highlights the achievement of the winners. For instance, last year Russia led the world in terms of air traffic, and our entire staff has contributed to it immensely. The award is a great present for Aeroflot’s 86th anniversary. Fly Aeroflot!” Valery Okulov urged. Andrei Kazmin stated that he regarded the prize as not only the acknowledgement of his 13-years of work for Sberbank, but also an advance and moral support for him in the face of the task of developing the postal industry – an entirely new challenge for him. “I am here to encourage you to write more kind and nice letters to each other,” he said, adding: “And be sure we will deliver them!” sia’s financial system.