Watch: Russians compete in grass scything contest

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Traditional tools came to the fore in Russia at the weekend with the holding of an annual scything competition.

Participants raced against the clock to cut areas of grass with a Russian scythe. Men battled 100-metre strips of grass with women facing 50m.

Referees were strict and penalised competitors that left patches longer than 5 cm by adding 20 seconds to their time.

This is the eighth year the competition has been held in the village of Arti and is supported by a local scythe and sickle factory.

Those who weren't so eager to cut the grass attended workshops about the traditional tool and learnt how to mow with them.