In response to the rising number of people interested in engaging in physical activity, a lot of new states opened up facilities like stadiums, sports complexes, pools, sports clubs, and private fitness clubs. The phrase “sportsman” is one that is frequently encountered. Uzbekistan has a history of producing Olympic winners in a variety of sports, including kickboxing, boxing, wrestling, gymnastics, and chess. These athletes have returned home with medals from competitions held in Atlanta, Sydney, and Lillehammer.
Dilshod Aripov is the reigning world champion in wrestling. Other notable competitors include Mahamadkodir Abdullaev, Sergey Mikhaelov, Rustam Saidov, Ruslan Chagaev, and Artur Grigoryan. Iroda, a boxer who has won both the Olympics and the world championship, Oksana Chusovitina won the world championship in gymnastics, and Tuliaganova won the WTA tennis championship. Uzbekistan has a long history of producing top-tier athletes in the fields of equestrian competition and wrestling (palvans). This country is the birthplace of a number of different sports, including the upright wrestling style known as kurash, as well as belbogli kurash and turon. Boxing, wrestling, and football (sometimes known as soccer) are some of the other popular sports in Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan has been participating in the Olympic Games with growing levels of success since it gained its independence in 1991. Uzbekistan has competed in the Summer Olympics on three separate occasions, bringing home a total of five bronze medals, two gold medals, and one silver medal in the sport of boxing, two gold medals, and one silver medal in the sport of wrestling. Lina Cheryazova’s victory in the aerials competition at the freestyle skiing competition at the Winter Olympics in Lillehammer in 1994 brought them their lone medal to this point. The sports of Football, Boxing, Rugby, and Uloq are considered to be among the most significant in Uzbekistan. The Uzbekistan Football Federation is in charge of managing the Uzbekistan national football team. Uzbekistan’s national football team is part of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). After taking part in a variety of competitions, it established its superiority at the Asian Games in 1994, where it won the championship and demonstrated its prowess. Among the countries that make up Central Asia, such as Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan, this squad is widely regarded as being the most formidable.
The equestrian competition known as “kopkari” or “uloq” is considered to be of equal importance to all Turk-speaking peoples in the region, including Uzbeks, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and Turkmen. The competition for riders is known as kopkari. At the conclusion of the meal, it is traditionally held in celebration of important holidays or marriages.
The word “kopkari” refers to the battle that is led by an experienced horseman to win a race that has specific requirements. During a kopkari match, the referee would typically throw the corpse of a goat that has been loaded with salt into the middle of the field. This object is known as the uloq. This carcass is being forced on the saddle by the horseman’s leg. Horseman should gallop through his competitors in the pitch in order to be the first to deliver the carcass to the designated location. Horsemen have the option to participate in teams and split the prize money among themselves. The awards can be things like a television, a carpet, a national overcoat, a cattle, or a certain sum of money. The goat is picked up by the most dexterous dzhigit (talented horseman) who is mounted on a powerful and quick-footed horse. As a general rule, he is surrounded by friends or fellow villagers who are there to guard and aid him from the other competitors until he crosses the finish line. The skills of correctly feeding and training fast horses were passed down through the generations of horsemen by horsemen. During World War II, a few of the racehorses that were being trained in Kopkari to compete did extraordinary things. Kopkari, on the other hand, is a non-violent game that has been shown to be crucial in the development of courageous men both historically and today. It is still organized in a number of districts across the provinces of Kashkadarya, Surkhandarya, Samarkand, and Bukhara at the present day. It is now considered a respectable custom to hold kopkari celebrations during Navruz holiday celebrations, gatherings of farmers, gardeners, and cotton growers, as well as harvest festivities. The practices of old-time riders and runners are slowly but surely making a comeback. It is of critical significance that one of the remarkable game traditions that dates back to antiquity has been resurrected and is currently through a new stage of its evolution.
Reference:
“Sports in Uzbekistan.” Marakandatravel.Com, https://www.marakandatravel.com/en/about-uzbekistan/uzbekistan-general-info/sports/index.html.
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