Nomad Games Becoming Comparable to the Olympics and World Cup, Cabinet Chief Says

Kyrgyzstan has passed the World Nomad Games to Russia, handing over one of the event’s symbols, a suu-kookor, at the closing ceremony in Cholpon-Ata. The traditional Kyrgyz leather vessel contained water collected from every region of the country.

Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev and Tatarstan leader Rustam Minnikhanov accepted the relay. Minnikhanov thanked Kyrgyzstan for the high standard of the sixth Games and said Tatarstan would draw on Kyrgyz experience when preparing the next edition, including by seeking advice from its organizers.

Speaking at the ceremony, Kyrgyz Cabinet Chairman Adylbek Kasymaliev said the Games had grown over 12 years into an international cultural and sporting movement. The event began at Issyk-Kul, later moved to Turkey and Kazakhstan, and returned to Kyrgyzstan in 2026 in a larger format that brought together participants from more than 100 countries.

Kasymaliev said the Games were gradually becoming a major sporting event comparable to the Olympics and the football World Cup, attracting interest around the world. He also described them as a cultural and intellectual gathering. During the event, the Kyrchyn gorge hosted displays of the culture, traditions and everyday life of nomadic peoples, while scholars discussed the history, statehood, languages, culture and worldview of nomadic civilization.

The sixth World Nomad Games took place in Kyrgyzstan from Aug. 31 to Sept. 6. The opening ceremony was held at Bishkek Arena, while the main competitions took place in the Issyk-Kul region. Kasymaliev said the Games, held during the 35th anniversary year of Kyrgyzstan’s independence, demonstrated the country’s potential and called their successful staging a shared victory for Kyrgyz citizens, participants and guests.

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The World Nomad Games are gradually becoming a major sporting event comparable to the Olympic Games and the football World Cup, which people around the world look forward to with interest.