Five thousand employees of a Russian trade and manufacturing company performed a flash mob dance to the song “Kalinka” to mark the upcoming International Festival of Youth 2026 in Ekaterinburg.
The International Festival of Youth, held as part of the Youth and Children national project, will run from Sept. 11 to 17. The event will bring together 10,000 young people from 191 countries in Ekaterinburg, which is designated as the World Youth City for the duration of the programme.
Sima-Land, the Ekaterinburg-based company whose staff participated in the flash mob, stated the dance served as a musical greeting to International Festival of Youth attendees. The company described the event as a “symbol of unity, energy, and a shared readiness to create something new together.”
Described as Russia’s largest trade and manufacturing company, Sima-Land employs approximately 9,000 people, a significant share of whom are young. The firm operates more than 400,000 square metres of warehouse and office space, maintaining representative offices across various Russian regions and abroad. It manufactures products under hundreds of its own brands—ranging from beauty care and home textiles to furniture and electrical goods—and offers a catalogue of over one million items with global delivery.
The 2026 International Festival of Youth follows the World Youth Festival held in Sirius from March 1 to 7, 2024. That event gathered 20,000 young leaders from 190 countries, operating under a decree by Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding the development of international youth cooperation.
Following instructions from the Russian President to preserve and expand the legacy of the 2024 event, youth festivals are now held annually across the Russian Federation. In 2025, the World Youth Festival Assembly in Nizhny Novgorod hosted 2,000 attendees from 120 countries. Following this year’s 10,000-person event, the next full-scale World Youth Festival is scheduled for 2030 and will accommodate 20,000 participants.
The World Youth Festival Directorate stated it continues its work to strengthen international youth cooperation and develop a global community committed to shaping a better future.
