Running With No Campaign: Russian Politicians Race at St Petersburg Forum

A total of 255 people, including German Gref (head of Sberbank, Russia's largest bank) and head of Match TV Tina Kandelaki, took part in the SPIEF race which kicked off near St.Isaac's Cathedral in the city's center at 06:30 Moscow time on Friday. The race was won by Dmitry Razumov, chief executive of the Russian investment company ONEXIM Group.

Earlier, Peskov said that winning the race does not matter for him, and that the dream of the overwhelming majority of those attending the 2016 SPIEF race was "to exchange suit and shoes for sneakers and sportswear."

Zakharova, in turn, said on her Facebook page that taking selfies during the start could prevent a participant from falling out of similar races. "Always take a selfie at the start and immediately post it on the Internet," she said.