The usually staid governor of Russia's second-largest city St. Petersburg has poured a bucket of water over his head for the "Ice Bucket Challenge," a global campaign aimed at raising money for, and awareness of, a degenerative motor neuron disease.
Governor Georgy Poltavchenko had been challenged by Vyacheslav Malafeyev, a goalkeeper for St. Petersburg's Zenit football club.
"Your offer reached me at home so I transferred the money first, and now I have come home and want to fulfill the second part of the assignment and also appeal to my colleagues — the governors of St. Petersburg's sister cities — to follow my example," Poltavchenko, who is not noted for his flamboyant public stunts, said in the video of him pouring the water on himself.
According to another statement, Poltavchenko transferred $100 to the ALS foundation, a U.S. charity that helps sufferers of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
President Vladimir Putin was challenged last week by Hollywood star Vin Diesel to throw a bucket of ice over himself.
According to Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov, the president is probably unaware of Vin Diesel's challenge.
"We had other things on our agenda," he told the Lenta.ru news site.
Other celebrities to have taken part in the challenge include Microsoft founder Bill Gates and singers Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber.
See also:
Vin Diesel Challenges Putin to Complete Ice Bucket Challenge (Video)
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