The Russians are in San Diego for RoboSub competition

The challenge is big and so is the venue for the competition: an enormous pool of water on San Diego's Point Loma where Navy scientists do high-tech testing of various devices to assist the U.S. military.

For this year's 15th RoboSub competition, 28 teams are jousting for prize winner and bragging rights.

And the phrase "The Russians are coming" has been replaced by "The Russians are here." For the first time, a team from the Russian Federation has entered the competition, as reported in The Times.

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 --Tony Perry in San Diego

Photo: Sergeenko Nikolai, a student from the Far Eastern Federal University in Vladivostock, helps lower into the water the Russian entry in the RoboSub competition. Credit: Don Bartlett / Los Angeles Times