For any commando, a maroon beret is not just a headdress, it is an indicator of a high level of his training. From year to year, the soldiers of the special forces of Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus and Uzbekistan pass a kind of exam in order to prove their endurance and ability to withstand any test. Which, by the way, is far from being possible for all applicants, for example, the surrender to the maroon beret in 2013 in the internal troops of Belarus was successful only for 22 out of 89 candidates.
The main purpose of maroon beret tests is to identify military personnel with special personal qualities and combat skills. In addition, receiving a maroon beret creates an incentive for fighters to develop high-willed and moral qualities in themselves.
Preliminary test
Any soldier who is serving in the military by conscription or contract can take the exam for a beret. However, he must carry outspecial forces for at least six months, have good grades in academic subjects and receive a positive reference from the command. Before a candidate is allowed to be tested by the chairman of the Maroon Beret Council, he must pass pre-qualification.
Pre-surrender for maroon beret usually takes place 2-3 days before the start of the main test. It includes a 3K run, pull-ups, and the so-called "4x10 test" consisting of push-ups, push-ups, push-ups, crouching, abdominal exercises, and jumping out of a crouching position. All exercises are repeated seven times.
Main test
Within one day, fighters must pass 7 stages of testing. Maroon beret pass standards include the following tests:
- March. Depending on the introductory orders of the commander, this type of test may include a whole range of various tasks (shelling, overcoming various obstacles and blockages, evacuating the wounded, etc.).
- Obstacle course.
- High-speed automatic shooting. This stage of the test tests the soldier's ability to fire under conditions of fatigue. The fighter has no more than 20 seconds to complete this test.
- Storm of the building. For this test, fighters are given 45 seconds each.
- Acrobatics.
- Complex of special exercises.
- Study duel. Surrender to the maroon beret ends with a training duel,lasting 12 minutes, during this time each of the candidates must fight with four partners, replacing each other.
Test Pass Evaluation
The part in which the change for the maroon beret takes place creates a special commission. During each of the tests, the members of the commission evaluate the participants, determining whether the candidate received a “credit” or not at one stage or another of the exam. Surrender to the maroon beret ends for the fighter after his first unsatisfactory assessment. Also, a candidate can be removed from the competition if 3 remarks are made to him during the exam. Applicants who pass all tests with positive marks receive a long-awaited maroon beret.
