Organizers of a large-scale educational youth forum at Lake Seliger in Russia's western Tver region are investigating the drowning of a young man, a participant in the forum said.
The body of Vitaly Spesivyh, born in 1989, was found in the beach late on Thursday. Dmitry Belyayev, who reported the incident, said the man had apparently drowned while trying to make stunts in the water. He said Spesivyh could not swim.
"His friends searched for him for a long time, and then found the body," Belyayev said. "An ambulance arrived and paramedics tried to resuscitate him, but it was already too late."
Flags at the Seliger-2010 forum are reportedly flying at half staff due to the tragedy, and all entertainment events have been canceled.
"We are waiting for the medical report," the event's organizers said.
The Seliger-2010 forum brought together some 20,000 young people from Russia and 80-odd other countries.
The annual forum, which is seen by many as a modern version of Soviet-era youth camps, has been held since 2005. It initially hosted only activists of the pro-Kremlin Nashi (Ours) youth movement, a pet project of then-President Vladimir Putin. This year's discussions at Lake Seliger were promoted as an international forum.
About 100 million rubles ($3.2 million) was allotted for the forum this year, with most of the funds raised from private sources.
MOSCOW, July 16 (RIA Novosti)
