The Best Russian Watches: 2024 Contest Winners Announced

On October 9th, the first day of the Moscow Watch Expo in Moscow, the winners of the Best Russian Watches; contest were announced. This year marked the third edition of this prestigious competition for domestic watchmakers.

This time, contestants competed in 8 categories, submitting 67 models for evaluation by professionals and enthusiasts. 40 companies and teams participated, garnering over 25,000 votes on the contest website, demonstrating the growing popularity of Russian watches and the increasing interest from both manufacturers and consumers. The competition, as usual, featured a wide range of participants: from renowned factories, known since Soviet times, to independent master watchmakers just starting their journey.

For the second consecutive year, watch enthusiasts could get a firsthand look at the nominated models at an exhibition in the Museum of Time and Clocks, which was held concurrently with the voting.

The winners are:

The nomination Heritage: Molniya Akinak: classic-style watches dedicated to the cultural heritage of the ancient Scythians, featuring hands in the form of a Scythian battle sword.

The nomination Russian Mechanics: Raketa Avant-garde - a model with a red triangular hand, representing a new perspective on avant-garde geometry in three classic colours of this cultural movement.

The nomination Men's Watches: Molniya Grand - watches with a dial decorated with two types of guilloché, equipped with the Molniya 3603 manufactory mechanism.

The nomination Women's Watches: Uglich Mechanics Marusya - watches with a creamy textured dial in the palette of Yesenin Russia, equipped with a modernized Poljot 3105 mechanism.

The nomination Mastery: Morzo Russian Art - watches by self-taught master Konstantin Morozov, adorned with smooth embroidery and equipped with a decorated mechanism.

The nomination Sports: Slava Pursuit - watches "chasing", combining digital and analog displays, inspired by the Soviet Pursuit; model that never went into mass production.

The nomination Independent Watchmakers: Aleksandr Nesterenko Art Deco - a model with a dial featuring exquisite guilloché and a mechanism with a pattern reminiscent of icy hummocks.

The nomination Russian Project: Hartland Elbrus - watches with a geographic dial design dedicated to Russia's highest mountain.

Special prizes:

Audience Choice Award: the Shark diving model from Vostok, a tribute to the world's largest submarine, with a steel 88-mm case and 200m water resistance.

Retail Choice: Dmitry Chugunov watches commemorating the book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, featuring the characters of the beloved fairytale on the dial.

Press Choice: Rashid Tsoroyev with Arrow Evo - watches with a dial hand-finished in the tramblage technique with yellow gold plating and a La Joux-Perret mechanism.

Folk Crafts: the Lincor Art Solo model by the Uglich Watch Factory with a dragon depicted on the dial in cloisonné enamel technique and a seeing eye on the rotor.

Grand Prix:

Grand Prize has won Kirill Chernitskiy with the Geometry model - watches with a living dial created from 290 parts, 275 of which are movable.

About the contest:

The  Best Russian Watches national competition has been held since 2022. Its mission is to support the domestic watch industry and introduce the wider audience to the products of Russian watchmakers. This year, the event is held with the support of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Large enterprises, small production facilities, and independent master watchmakers from Russia and the Eurasian Economic Union were invited to participate in the contest.