#1 - JRL 7027
Rosbalt
Russian Circus Voted Best in World

MOSCOW, January 21. The results of the 27th International Circus Festival were announced in Monte Carlo. As a Rosbalt correspondent was informed, the festival's Golden Clown Grand Prix was won by the Russian State Circus for its programme Flying Boards under the direction of honoured Russian artist Vladimir Puzanov. The programme was extremely popular: the audience, including the judges and the royal Grimaldi family, rose on two occasions to give the Russian acrobats a standing applause. The artists of the Russian State Circus were also awarded special prizes: Flying Boards was awarded the Monaco prize, the Dzen-Urunov trapeze artists were awarded the French circus prize and the Kanukov riders were awarded the Italian circus prize. The award ceremony takes place today.

The International Circus Festival is being held from January 16-23. 25 programmes from Canada, Germany, France, China, Korea, the Ukraine, the USA, England, Switzerland and Russia are included in the competition. Four of the Russian programmes were immediately selected for nomination by Prince Rene III. The programmes were assessed by 6 judges, Permanent President of the festival and Chairman of the jury Prince Rene, his younger daughter Princess Stephanie (vice-president and deputy chairman of the jury) as well as four leading circus artists from France, England, Mexico and Korea.

The International Circus Festival in Monte Carlo was first held in 1974 on the initiative of Prince Rene III and it has been held on an annual basis ever since. The festival has become the greatest circus event of the year, the 'circus Oscars'.