Int'l Army Games: Culinary challenge taking spectators by surprise in Russia

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02:09

Thirty-two countries are battling it out at the International Army Games in Russia, and there's one particular challenge that has taken spectators by surprise. It involves army kitchen teams shooting at targets and then cooking up their best meals. And as Dan Ashby reports, the heat is on.

The Army Games may be known for their rough-and-tumble challenges, but one event requires some unexpected finesse: the military kitchen cook off.

DAN ASHBY ALABINO "Some pretty basic military equipment like this is being used by the teams, who are trying to prepare haute cuisine for a panel of discerning judges. They have taken over this whole area and I can tell you - it's a hungry person's nightmare!"

But it's not just a culinary affair: Chefs must first show they can shoot to kill, and then sautee to surprise!

DAN ASHBY ALABINO "Isn't that a strange thing? Shooting and cooking? They seem very different?"

LT. COLONEL SHAVIT MILITARY CHEF "This is the Army Games. We start out in the army doing only one profession and that's always as a soldier. And then we go to our second profession: and that's as cooks."

But while the chefs may feel under fire, when it came to beating their rivals - there was no sour, Kazakh rice.

LT. COLONEL SHAVIT MILITARY CHEF "It's the best place to meet other people, make a relationship with other countries. We've got a lot of friends out there. We've got 12 states in the competition and it's all good."

But there is only one apple of their eye: winning.

DAN ASHBY ALABINO "So how will you celebrate if you win? By eating Russian borsht? Or will you celebrate by eating some of your own food?"

LT. COLONEL SHAVIT MILITARY CHEF "I think I'd buy each of my own team a bottle of Russian vodka!"

DAN ASHBY ALABINO "Well, make sure the competition is over!"

LT. COLONEL SHAVIT MILITARY CHEF "Yes - but I'd give it to each of my team and let them do with it as he wants!"

So they are military chefs, armed with kitchen knives and hellbent on perfection, and they're trained to shoot a person dead in seconds. Just be happy that you're not the waiter. Dan Ashby, CGTN, International Army Games.