According to the Ministry of Health, around 12 children die each year during school sports lessons. Officials blame school doctors for not doing their job properly.

“These tragic cases are often linked to insufficient medical check-ups. If children were fully examined on a regular basis by the school's medics, then these tragedies could be prevented,” says Vladislav Kuchma from the Ministry of Health.

However, the schools are saying they're not doing anything wrong. They assess each child's level of fitness and put them in groups according to their fitness level. Teachers say sports lessons are vital for children's health. Sometimes it's the only exercise they get all week.

A recent government survey revealed that 60 per cent of Russian children suffer from poor health. Yet, experts say, sports lessons are not getting easier.

Children nowadays, who prefer TV, the internet and computer games to more active pastimes,are not able to do the same physical exercises that children did 30 years ago, says Aleksandr Blayer from the University of Physical Culture and Sports, and the problem is that schools are still using old physical standards.

The Ministry of Health now says it plans to work with schools and health care providers to create new benchmarks for sports lessons, hoping to bring physical education in line with the capabilities of the new generation.