Mother of special military operation hero demands Order of Courage for fallen son

Artyom Sugrobov died at 20, evacuating hundreds of wounded from the battlefield. His mother has been unable to receive the promised Order of Courage for a year and a half due to bureaucratic delays.

Jan 26, 2026

A photograph from the family archive of Artyom Sugrobov, a soldier who died in the special military operation.
Source:
from family archive

For over a year and a half, Oksana Sugrobova has been corresponding with the Ministry of Defense, trying to obtain the Order of Courage for her deceased son Artyom. The young man served under contract and died in the special military operation, having carried out hundreds of successful evacuations of the wounded.

Artyom Sugrobov was born in 2004 in the Urals. From the age of four, he played hockey, performing in youth leagues, and after the family moved to St. Petersburg, he played for the team «SKA-Silver Lions». After graduating from school, he enrolled in a private college but soon left his studies and started working in the food service industry.

In April 2023, Artyom was called up for mandatory military service. Despite his family«s concerns, he refused to evade it. In August of the same year, he was offered training at a military academy in Voronezh to obtain the rank of junior lieutenant. The young man signed a contract along with a report on being sent for studies.

However, instead of Voronezh, in September Artyom ended up in Belgorod, where he was supposed to undergo training before being sent to the special military operation zone. In an SMS to his mother, he wrote: «I»ll study, it will be better than in April. Only, if possible, don«t make a tragedy out of this; on the contrary, I want you to be proud that here is an officer, a defender.»

Oksana Sugrobova tried to challenge the contract, turning to a lawyer and the prosecutor«s office. However, according to a presidential decree from September 2022, terminating a contract during partial mobilization is possible only on limited grounds, which did not apply to Artyom.

At the front, Artyom first served as an assault soldier, but after a few days, he was transferred to communications. He was located 10 kilometers from the frontline, but actively helped medics by going out to evacuate the wounded. Over time, this became his main task.

Financial issues accompanied his service. Artyom did not receive the promised governor«s payment of 500,000 rubles (approximately $5,500 at current rates), as it is not provided for conscripts called up for mandatory service. The one-time payment of 195,000 rubles (about $2,100) for signing the contract and monthly payments he spent on food, internet, and even on spare parts for vehicles used for evacuation.

In correspondence with his mother, he shared details of daily life: the ration included cereals and canned goods, but the guys cooked for themselves, buying additional products at a local store. Artyom joked that the physical load was comparable to three hockey trainings a day.

In October 2023, the political officer transferred him to a communication point, but Artyom continued to participate in evacuations. He saved the wounded under fire; twice the vehicle he was riding in was blown up. The young man planned to transfer to a hospital or train to become a drone operator.

On April 19, 2024, the day when his mandatory service term was supposed to end, Artyom sustained severe injuries while evacuating the wounded. He shielded the driver, taking the main blow. In a coma, he was delivered to the Burdenko Hospital in Moscow.

On April 29, 2024, Artyom Sugrobov died. He was 20 years old. The unit commander informed the mother that he had recommended him for the Order of Courage posthumously.

Back in winter, Artyom was recommended for the medal «For Saving Lives». The medal itself arrived at the unit on April 27, when he was unconscious, and the certificate for it was presented to the family only in November 2024.

The procedure for receiving state awards in Russia includes several stages:

report from the unit commander,
approval through instances,
signing of the presidential decree,
solemn presentation.

For participants of the special military operation, a special procedure is in effect, allowing awards to be presented at the front with subsequent documentation.

It is this order, introduced by the decree of October 7, 2022, that created a problem for the Sugrobov family. The medal was presented to Artyom effectively during his lifetime, but in the documents it is marked as «posthumous», which, according to experts, can block the recommendation for other awards after death.

According to information from the Ministry of Defense, there are no data in the document flow system about the recommendation of Artyom Sugrobov for the Order of Courage. The commander«s report could have been lost or not submitted, although the mother claims she was informed about it.

Alexander Pavlov, head of the St. Petersburg branch of the «Defenders of the Fatherland» foundation, confirmed that such cases are not rare. «Situations where relatives do not receive awards they have heard about are extremely common,» he noted.

After the story became known, a representative of the foundation contacted Oksana Sugrobova. He reported that no documents for awarding the order were found. The mother insists: «I want to be heard. My son earned this order.»

Oksana is fighting for the award not for herself, but in memory of her son and his fallen comrades. She hopes that her efforts will help change the system so that other families do not face similar difficulties.

As Alexander Pavlov noted, the generalization of such cases could lead to changes in legislation simplifying the posthumous awarding of heroes of the special military operation.