The 12th Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest has officially opened in Moscow, with submissions now underway.
The annual contest is held in memory of Andrei Stenin, a photojournalist with the Rossiya Segodnya Media Group who was killed near Donetsk in the summer of 2014.
The contest is traditionally launched on his birthday, Dec. 22.
Dmitry Kiselev, Director General of the Rossiya Segodnya International Media Group said: “For the 12th time, the Andrei Stenin Contest is preparing to open submissions, a moment that is always joyful and exciting. This year is particularly special, as we have prepared a surprise that we are confident will delight participants.
‘’We are pleased to announce a new category, Energy of Life, which will be open to photojournalists aged 34 and over.
‘’Our mission remains unchanged: to discover new names and give young photographers a strong start. At the same time, we are very interested in the work of established professionals, who help set benchmarks for the next generation.
‘’We look forward to projects from both seasoned masters and emerging authors – together, they form the diverse, vivid, and sometimes contradictory picture of contemporary photojournalism. We are proud to be part of this process.”
The competition features six categories: Top News, Sports, My Planet, Portrait. A Hero of Our Time, Top View, and the newly introduced category Energy of Life.
Entries in Top News, My Planet, and Portrait. A Hero of Our Time may be submitted as either single images or photo series. The Sports and Top View categories accept single images only.
The Energy of Life category is open to photographers aged 34 and older, while the remaining five categories are open to participants aged 18 to 33.
Professional photographers may submit applications through the competition’s official website in Russian and English through Feb. 28, 2026.
The prize fund for the 2025 competition awards are 125,000 rubles for first place, 100,000 rubles for second place, and 75,000 rubles for third place in each category.
The recipient of the competition’s top honour, the Grand Prix, will receive 700,000 rubles.
The awards ceremony for the 12th Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest is traditionally scheduled to take place in Moscow between September and November 2026.
Over the years, the competition’s jury has featured internationally acclaimed photographers, including Vladimir Vyatkin (Russia), Gabriele Cecconi (Italy), Sefa Karacan (Türkiye), and Juan Cañete (Argentina), among others.
The list of laureates includes world-renowned photojournalists such as Yelena Anosova (Russia), recognized for her powerful series on women in prisons; Danilo García Di Meo (Italy), awarded for Letizia: The Story of an Invisible Life, documenting the life of a paralyzed girl; and Alejandro Martínez Vélez (Spain), honoured for his reportage on migrants in Belgrade.
In 2025, the competition’s Grand Prix was awarded to Yekaterina Yakel (Russia) for her series Russian Character: Obstacle Course, which portrays war veterans who, in spite of injuries and trauma, continue to demonstrate courage and resilience in peaceful life.
This year’s competition continues its long-standing tradition of showcasing winning works through touring exhibitions in Russia and abroad.
Over the past 12 years, exhibitions featuring the competition’s award-winning photographs have been presented in numerous countries, including China, South Africa, Mexico, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Türkiye, Lebanon, Germany, Spain, Italy, Greece, Hungary, Poland, Egypt, and others.
The Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest, organized by the Rossiya Segodnya Media Group under the auspices of the Russian Federation Commission for UNESCO, is dedicated to supporting young photographers and raising public awareness of the challenges facing contemporary photojournalism.
The competition’s general media partners are VGTRK (the All-Russian State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company) and the Russian online platform SMOTRIM.
The competition’s international media partners include News Agency of Nigeria (Nigeria), Independent Media Holding and ANA News Agency (South Africa); Shanghai United Media Group (SUMG) and The Paper online portal (China); Dar Al Sharq Media Holding (Qatar); Brasil247 online portal (Brazil); PTI News Agency (India); IINA News Agency (Iraq); MEHR News Agency (Iran); and Xinhua News Agency (China).
The competition’s industry partners include the Union of Journalists of Russia, the YOung JOurnalists information portal, and Photo-study.ru (Russia).(Sputnik/NAN)
Edited by Ismail Abdulaziz
