A young Russian soldier was given a top medal for holding a frontline position by himself for 68 days.

Question

❗Russian Defense Minister Belousov awards 'Gold Star' of Hero of Russia to 21yo Sergey Yarashev, who SINGLE-HANDEDLY held positions near Grishino in the Donetsk People's Republic FOR 68 DAYS
@mta.info

Answer 1

After researching and reading through articles, I found that Sergey Yarashev, did indeed receive the prestigious "Star of Hero of Russia Medal" after holding positions in the DPR for 68 days. He was removed from the site with extreme injuries, resulting in the amputation of his feet. The award was ordered to be given to Sergey Yarashev by Russian President Vladimir Putin. After reading through the sources, the claim made about Yarashev is truthful given the written details and evidence provided. The resources I found also state other relevant details to the story, such as how Yarashev managed to hold out until he was eventually rescued, despite his bad injuries.

I found and used the source below to support my findings. From this article, I learned that Sergey Yarashev, 21-year-old soldier was awarded the medal "Hero of Russia" by Russian President Vladimir Putin for holding DPR positions for 68 whole days, and proceeded to be evacuated with severe injuries. Additionally, I learned that Putin ordered the award to Yarashev on March 10, 2026.

https://nationaltoday.com/us/ca/coronado/news/2026/03/10/putin-awards-hero-of-russia-medal-to-21-year-old-soldier/

This link below is a Russian publication that gives more detail and describes that Defense Minister Andrei Belousov was the one who presented the Gold Star medal to Private Sergei Yarashev, Russian soldier.

https://en.iz.ru/en/2065224/2026-03-24/what-known-about-sergei-yarashev-who-received-gold-star-medal-hero-russia

My first source, National Today, is a reliable source for news information and updates. They produce many different types of articles that provide relevant information. The source has many articles on recent events and even holidays.

https://nationaltoday.com/us/ca/coronado/news/2026/03/10/putin-awards-hero-of-russia-medal-to-21-year-old-soldier/

The claim that is to be fact-checked is "Russian Defense Minister Belousov awards 'Gold Star' of Hero of Russia to 21yo Sergey Yarashev who single-handedly held positions in the DPR for 68 days." This statement is true according to the information provided in the article. This source mentions that Denis Pushilin, head of DPR, was the one who appealed to President Vladimir Putin to award Yarashev for what he had done. It provides information that Vladimir Putin made the decision and ordered the award of the Hero of Russia medal to Yarashev. The article talks about how the award of the Hero of Russia medal, is one of the highest military honors, and that Yarashev's outstanding efforts have been rightfully, officially recognized and praised by Russia's leadership.

https://en.iz.ru/en/2065224/2026-03-24/what-known-about-sergei-yarashev-who-received-gold-star-medal-hero-russia

This is the resource that proves the claim that Defense Minister Belousov was the one who had presented the award to 21 year old Russian soldier, Yarashev.

Comments

While this is a solid fact check that correctly distinguishes between the executive order signed by Putin and the medal presentation by Belousov, your choice of sources is a bit questionable. Using National Today a site mostly known for "National Pancake Day" and holiday trivia, for high-stakes geopolitical news feels like citing a party planning blog for a military report; they likely just scraped a wire report from a state outlet. To add some substantial depth, it’s worth noting that Yarashev’s survival for 68 days was largely credited to drone resupplies, a detail that makes the "single-handed" claim much more plausible in a modern context.

Answer 2

I looked up the name of the soldier, Sergey Yarashev, and I was met with a handful of sources, in both English and Russian, reporting on this. I also searched "hero of Russia", the name of the award allegedly received, and some of the first results were stories about Yarashev. Kremlin.ru and Izvestia (Известия), a government-owned website and a newspaper, are the two most popular sources reporting on this story. Credibility websites suggest that Russian media is under heavy influence from the Russian government and current administration and largely creates bias in Russian media. Additionally, Izvestia was recently acquired by a close friend of Vladimir Putin. (Kremlin.ru - MediaBiasFactCheck.com Izvestia - mediabiasfactcheck.com)

All of the sources cite an announcement made by Dmitry Peskov on March 10, 2026, for information about the Yarashev's award. Some sites list him as a Kremlin spokesman and others the presidential press secretary, which I assume is used interchangeably as Kremin is owned by the Russian government, but made me look twice. I can't find a transcript of the original announcement.

All things considered, I believe this claim to be true. The sources all report the same timeline and details, pointing to an official announcement from the Russian government. This may be due in part to the government's control over the media, but I don't think that is necessarily relevant because it is a military matter.

Disclaimer: I'm writing this only four days after it was asked, but, unfortunately, the original Bluesky post has already been deleted. I tried to investigate on the Russian Ministry of Defense's website, but it is blocked here in the U.S. I was also prevented from accessing certain parts of Izvestia and Kremlin.

Answer 3

The claim that a young Russian soldier was awarded a top medal for his efforts of holding a frontline position by himself for 68 days is partly true. The first record of this origin of the story is from a meeting between Denis Pushilin and Putin, as recorded on March 10, 2026. At this meeting, Pushilin informed Putin of the actions of a soldier named Sergei Yarashev, who had held one frontline position for 68 days and received food and ammunition from attack drones. Pushilin is not an independent source of this information. He is the head of the Russian-backed government. Also, the Kremlin, which published this meeting, is also involved in the war.

The best confirmation of the story is the award that was presented to the soldier. Legal records of Russia confirm that Sergeant Yarashev was awarded the title of “Hero of the Russian Federation.” The majority of the reports of this story, however, come from Russian and Kremlin news media. These outlets reiterate the story that Pushilin provided to Putin. There is no confirmation from other news media sources of this story. The story begins with Pushilin, Putin’s announcement of the award, the decree of the award, and then the reporting of the story by the Russian news media. All of these sources have an interest in the outcome of the war. Their statements should be treated with caution until confirmed by independent sources of information. Therefore, the story of the soldier is only partly reliable. It is true that the soldier was awarded a medal for his actions. However, the claim that he was alone at the position for 68 days has not been independently verified.

Answer 4

The core claim is partly verified: Russian official sources confirm that Sergey Yarashev, age 21, was awarded the Hero of Russia title for “courage and heroism,” and the Kremlin says Putin instructed the award after Yarashev “single-handedly held positions” near Grishino for 68 days. The specific phrasing in the comment is close to the official Russian narrative, but the underlying facts come from Russian state sources rather than independent battlefield verification

Kremlin order to award Yarashev: The Kremlin’s official site says Putin signed an executive order awarding Private Sergei Yarashev the title of Hero of the Russian Federation for courage and heroism in military duty. This confirms the award itself

Kremlin: instruction to prepare the award — http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/79308

Answer 5

Your claim that this Russian solider who single-handedly held his positions for 68 days is totally true, only thing is you misspelt his name. You wrote "Sergey" which is incorrect it is actually "Sergei".

I found these two sources talking about it, one is a source strait from the Kremlins (Russian government) official website that discusses that he has been awarded the title of "Hero of the Russian Federation" from a presidential executive order. The next source which is an English language Russian news source which talks about who Sergei Yarashev is and more about him and "For this feat, President Vladimir Putin awarded Sergei Yarashev the title of Hero of the Russian Federation."

http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/79311/print#:~:text=The%20President%20signed%20Executive%20Order,Federation%20to%20Private%20Sergei%20Yarashev.&text=In%20accordance%20with%20the%20Presidential,the%20line%20of%20military%20duty.

https://en.iz.ru/en/2065224/2026-03-24/what-known-about-sergei-yarashev-who-received-gold-star-medal-hero-russia

Answer 6

This claim is partly true. Russia has publicly said that 21 year old Sergey Yarashev was awarded the Hero of Russia Gold Star, so that part checks out. But the more intense story that he held a position near Grishino in the Donetsk region completely alone for 68 days only comes from Russian government or pro state sources and has not been independently confirmed by neutral or international reporting. Because of that, the award itself is real, but the specific details about what happened in combat should be taken with some skepticism rather than treated as fully proven.

Answer 7

As I examined my findings I found out that a 21 year old did in fact hold a position near Grishino in the Donetsk People's Republic for 68 days straight. The position he held was on enemy lines and was one of the hottest spots. He lost both of his feet but will make a recovery. President Putin presented the award to him in the hospital. For my primary source I used the Russian defense Ministry. I learned about how intense his position was and more about what level of that award means. My secondary source is a video I found on X, this gave me no question whether it was real or not. X would be the only one that would have a bias because anyone can post anything but on the Russian Defense Ministry website only post stuff that actually happened. The video evidence of the boy and Russian generals is what gives me evidence that the statement is true.
 

https://eng.mil.ru/news/8af912c5-2a96-403d-8105-aea878a1ce48#:~:text=Russian%20Defence%20Minister%20Andrei%20Belousov,Pv. 

https://x.com/RT_com/status/2036400014105125118

Answer 8

After being separated from the main group, Sergei Yarashev, a 21-year-old soldier, held the frontline alone for 68 days. Due to the frostbite, Yarashev lost both of his legs, and is recovering in the hospital. Because of his courage and work over the 68 days, Vladimir Putin is set to award him the Hero of the Russion Federation.

Primary Source:
News Video from Soldier

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTr3abbhHFI

Sergei Yarashev is set to be awarded the Hero of the Russian Federation after being separated from his main group, and holding a frontline position by himself for 68 days.

Secondary Source:

News Article

https://www.eadaily.com/en/news/2026/03/10/the-fighter-who-alone-held-the-position-for-68-days-will-be-awarded-the-title-of-hero-by-putin

Sergei Yarashev held frontline positions alone while getting ammunition and food delivered to him via drone for 68 days. Because of this, Vladimir Putin has been instructed to “prepare a decree awarding the title of Hero of Russia” to Yarashev.

4. What potential biases or interests might each of your sources have?

Source 1:

This source may have a particular interest in only talking about Yarashev which makes complete sense. 

Source 2:

Because my second source is a Russian company, they may leave some stuff out, or make it so their president sounds better. 

5. What evidence supports the claim you are fact-checking?

The sources I provided above are evidence that supports the claim I am fact-checking. This is because there is a Russian soldier confirming this is true, and a verified news agency reporting on it. However, I believe that the second source slightly undermines the claim. In the original claim, it states that the soldier will be recieving a top medal, however in the article he is said to be set to award a title, which is the Hero of Russia.