From a blacksmith to a long-haul truck driver, the heroes of today's photo gallery had to brave their way to professional success brushing prejudices aside.
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© Sputnik / Vladimir Astapkovich
American football player Daniella Djeylani, 22. Daniella plays for the Moscow Sirens club and is a member of the Russia national American football team.
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© Sputnik / Vladimir Astapkovich
With her fascination for sports going back to her childhood, Djeylani got into American football in 2016. She also enjoys snowboarding, wakeboarding and track and field.
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© Sputnik / Vladimir Astapkovich
Djeylani is a running back in her team. In her everyday life, Daniella works as a business coach in a bank.
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© Sputnik / Vladimir Astapkovich
Djeylani says she wants to become an even better athlete and achieve new heights.
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© Sputnik / Ilya Pitalev
Jockey Anastasia Zadiran says that horseback riding is perceived as a sport popular with women as traditionally many women choose to ride horses for fun. However while that it may true for enthusiasts, she says, in professional equestrianism "you hit what is called a glass ceiling."
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© Sputnik / Ilya Pitalev
Around the world, women rarely manage to become jockeys, Zadiran says, adding that the likely reason for that is the extremely traditional nature of equestrianism: "A real horse jockey is perceived as a cavalryman, a warrior. So get out of the way, woman!" Zadiran says that female jockeys have to break traditions to become successful.
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© Sputnik / Ilya Pitalev
Zadiran tries to break the glass ceiling not only in Russia, but in other countries as well: "In this occupation, I'm constantly facing a negative attitude because I'm a woman," Zadiran says. "I have to admit that if I were a man I would have achieved more."
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© Sputnik / Ilya Pitalev
"I hope that everyone will soon realize that it's normal for a woman to be in the saddle," Zadiran concludes.
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© Sputnik / Iliya Pitalev
In olden times, a blacksmith used to be an important, dangerous and mysterious person. He worked with an open fire; he could make a sword or a plow. Not much has changed since then: a blacksmith is still a respected and mysterious person. And a female blacksmith, like Natalya Zabelina, even more so.
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© Sputnik / Iliya Pitalev
"I wasn't planning to become a blacksmith. It all happened suddenly. I finished school and wanted to take a short break before becoming a professional track and field athlete. I planned to become a coach in the future. But then, by complete accident, I met Valery Koptev, a famous blacksmith from Tula," Zabelina says adding that Koptev must have seen something in her that prompted him to offer to teach Natalya the trade. She spent three years training under Koptev's supervision before setting up her own workshop.
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© Sputnik / Iliya Pitalev
Zabelina started in the 90's, the Renaissance period for the art of making Damascus steel in Russia.
Zabelina says that for her, making cold steel arms is a form of art. She enjoys working with Damascus steel, creating new shapes, designs and even colors.
Zabelina says that for her, making cold steel arms is a form of art. She enjoys working with Damascus steel, creating new shapes, designs and even colors.
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© Sputnik / Iliya Pitalev
Zabelina has been working together with designer Olga Khabalova for five years now. Collectors hold the duo in high regard, waiting patiently for months to get one-of-a-kind items for their collections.
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© Sputnik / Alexey Kudenko
Long-haul driver Yevgenia Markova has always been fascinated with cars. As soon as she got her driving license at the age of 23, she immediately decided that she wanted to become a professional driver. However, making this dream come true was not as easy as she expected - Markova soon learned that she wouldn't be able to become a military driver as the occupation is officially deemed too dangerous for women.
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© Sputnik / Alexey Kudenko
Markova says that one of the myths about truck drivers is that they are all poorly educated. Markova herself has two graduate degrees, one in information security and one in management. She has had numerous jobs in IT, with Kaspersky Labs as her last place of employment. "Yes, I kept working [in IT] but never gave up the dream to become a long-haul driver, because one can only be truly happy if one does what one loves," Markova says.
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© Sputnik / Alexey Kudenko
Soon after Markova got her special category driving license, a friend told her about a freight company that was recruiting female drivers. This proved to be her golden ticket to get into the occupation she had always dreamt of.
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© Sputnik / Alexey Kudenko
Now Markova drives a 20-ton Scania, crossing thousands of kilometers every month. There are three more female colleagues employed at the same company.
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© Sputnik / Ramil Sitdikov
Yelena Sobol used to be a professional volleyball player when she was little, but boxing interested her then as well: "During volleyball training sessions, my coach taught us some boxing moves too."
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© Sputnik / Ramil Sitdikov
Sobol had to pause her sport career to get a higher education. Once she graduated from Moscow State University with a degree in journalism, Sobol started working in major Russian news agencies, including R-Sport which is a part of Rossiya Segodnya.
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© Sputnik / Ramil Sitdikov
"Even though I didn't have much time to train, at some point I realized that it was something I want to do. I frequented the gym, and 2.5 years ago I got into the Boxing Academy," Sobol explains.
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© Sputnik / Ramil Sitdikov
"In boxing, I found a new me. Boxing is an individual type of sport, it forms character. It is an art of defense and a good school of life," Sobol concludes.
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© Sputnik / Iliya Pitalev
Even though she holds a law degree from the Kikot Moscow University of the Ministry of the Interior of Russia, Yekaterina Pronyakina chose to become a state inspector of small vessels.
"I decided to give it a try out of curiosity. Numerous attempts to make me change my mind only enforced my desire to prove that I can overcome any difficulties and even patrol along with male colleagues," Pronyakina explains.
"I decided to give it a try out of curiosity. Numerous attempts to make me change my mind only enforced my desire to prove that I can overcome any difficulties and even patrol along with male colleagues," Pronyakina explains.
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© Sputnik / Iliya Pitalev
As a state inspector of small vessels, Pronyakina oversees the movements of small ships and ensures the safety of the people on board. The inspector uses a hovercraft to do her job.
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© Sputnik / Iliya Pitalev
"Some people said that no one would take a female inspector seriously. I proved them wrong," Pronyakina says.
"I'm used to people being surprised when they see me in a uniform from afar. However, it doesn't affect my performance at all," Pronyakina says, adding that she's always friendly when she's on duty, smiling at the people she meets.
