Sergei Solnechnikov

Sergei Alexandrovich Solnechnikov (Серге́й Александрович Солнечников, 19 August 1980 – 28 March 2012) was a Russian military officer, who at the cost of his own life saved his subordinates covering a grenade. He was honored as a Hero of the Russian Federation, posthumously.

During training exercises on March, 28 at a Far Eastern military base near the town of Belogorsk, major Solnechnikov pushed a soldier away from an unsuccessfully thrown grenade and threw himself over it after it bounced back into the trench they were in with dozens of soldiers standing nearby. Sonechnikov received serious injuries and was rushed into hospital but died almost 2 hours later.

Sonlnechnikov's feat received vast attention and sympathy in the media and across the Runet. He was buried with military honors on 2 April in his home town of Volzhsky. The next day he as awarded Russia's highest honor, the Hero of Russia.