Students of the Northern State Medical University (NSMU) were among the top ten teams at the First International Olympiad for Students in Colorectal Surgery. The Olympiad was organised by the Russian Society of Colorectal Surgeons. Over 70 teams from medical universities in Russia, the Republic of Belarus, China, and Vietnam took part in the competition. Contestants went through several rounds, including the analysis of complex clinical cases that required logical thinking and an ethical approach. Practical tasks included: 🔹 performing a single‑row end‑to‑end anastomosis; 🔹 laparoscopic appendectomy; 🔹 hemorrhoidal artery ligation with mucopexy; 🔹 anterior resection of the rectum with the creation of a colorectal anastomosis and the formation of a protective stoma; 🔹 completing tasks on wet specimens to create an end‑to‑side intestinal anastomosis on animal intestines in an abdominal cavity model. After all the challenges, our students took 7th place and made it into the top ten strongest teams! 👏 Congratulations to Olga Dekhtyarenko (4th year, Faculty of General Medicine), Varvara Protopopova (4th year, Faculty of General Medicine), and Nikolai Zimin (6th year, Faculty of General Medicine). Olga Dekhtyarenko shared her impressions: “For us, this Olympiad represents a new level—an opportunity to gain new knowledge and skills. We’d like to thank our mentors, who, despite their busy schedules, found time to help us prepare. We always attend the conferences organised by Vladimir Alexandrovich Kislov at the N. A. Semashko Northern Medical Centre, where experienced surgeons from our city and other regions demonstrate their expertise—and it’s definitely something we aspire to master. We are grateful to Kirill Vladimirovich Gilman for his support and belief in us, and for helping us get ready for the Olympiad. Thanks to mentors like these, we’re motivated to learn more and keep honing our skills every single day!”