Date: June 10, 1996

Photographer: Alexander Zemlianichenko – Russian photographer for the Associated Press.

Details: This iconic photograph was taken during the Russian presidential elections in which incumbent President Boris Yeltsin was seeking re-election. He faced a tough competition against ten other candidates, most notably his primary rival, Gennady Zyuganov, who was leading in early opinion polls. At the time, there were widespread concerns about Yeltsin’s health and doubts about his ability to lead the country effectively. In a bid to counter these concerns, Yeltsin decided to demonstrate his vitality during a rock music concert as part of his campaign rally in Rostov.

As the crowd watched in surprise, Yeltsin took to the stage and began dancing with the band, showcasing his physical stamina and dismissing the doubts about his health. The event proved to be a successful part of his campaign, leading to his re-election.

At that moment, Alexander Zemlianichenko, the Associated Press photographer covering Yeltsin’s campaign, was present and captured the President’s performance. Given the uniqueness of the moment, Zemlianichenko quickly documented it with his camera. After the concert, he sent the photos to his agency. Later that night, while heading to bed, Zemlianichenko received a call from Vin Alabiso, the Deputy Director of Photography at the Associated Press. Alabiso was extremely impressed with the image and told Zemlianichenko that the photograph itself was truly a prize for Yeltsin. Zemlianichenko humbly responded, “Yeltsin danced, and I just pressed the camera button.”

Once the photo was published in newspapers, it gained unprecedented fame, contributing to Zemlianichenko winning third place in the International Press Photography Awards for that year, as well as a Pulitzer Prize. Zemlianichenko commented that winning the award felt much better than Yeltsin’s experience of dancing, and he added that Yeltsin had danced twice during his campaign—once in Ufa, where Zemlianichenko had also taken some photos, but the best moment was captured during the second dance in Rostov. Given the weak telephone lines in Russia at that time, Zemlianichenko spent most of the night trying to send the photo and others. He concluded by stating that Yeltsin should share the award with him because, without the dance, the photograph wouldn’t have been possible.