The Adventures of Nicole was invited to attend the 2024 World Nomad Games held in Astana and to work along with the Ministry of Tourism to promote Northern Kazakhstan, all opinions are her own.

A Guide to the World Nomad Games

A Guide to the World Nomad Games was originally published in 2024

The World Nomad Games, nicknamed the ‘Nomad Olympics‘ is a celebration of the nomadic sports and culture of Central Asia. Instead of the typical sports you would see played at the Olympics, the World Nomad Games feature sports such as kok boru, kusbegelik, and audaryspak.

After now having attended two of the games, the 2018 World Nomad Games in Cholpon Ata, Kyrgyzstan, and most recently the 2024 World Nomad Games in Astana, Kazakhstan I finally decided 5o put a post together about what you will see and what to expect for the upcoming 2026 World Nomad Games.

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What are the World Nomad Games

The World Nomad Games are an international sporting event that honors traditional sports and cultures, primarily from Central Asia.

The games feature unique sports and activities rooted in the historically nomadic lifestyle among the inhabitants of the region, such as horseback archery, kok-boru (a game akin to polo involving horse-mounted players albeit using a goat carcass rather than a ball), wrestling, traditional wrestling (and many variations thereof), and salburun (eagle hunting).

Launched in 2014 in Kyrgyzstan, the event aims to preserve and promote the cultural traditions of nomadic peoples of Central Asia and beyond while fostering international unity and understanding through sports and cultural exchange.

Where & When is the Next World Nomad Games?

The World Nomad Games are held every two years, the next being held in Kyrgyzstan in 2026. The exact location will be announced at a later date, so check back here for updates.

The first three World Nomad Games were held in Cholpon Ata, Kyrgyzstan in 2014, 2016, and 2018. Due to the pandemic, the 2020 games were postponed and resumed in 2022, only this time held in Iznik, Turkey. The most recent edition of the World Nomad Games was held from September 8-13, 2024 in Astana, Kazakhstan.

How to get Tickets for the World Nomad Games

Tickets for the 2026 World Nomad Games won’t be on sale for a while but once they are, I will share the link here. For reference, know that typically tickets will be sold on the official website of the official World Nomad Games (usually via a sales partner).

Sports Played at the World Nomad Games

Horse Sports

Kok Boru / Kok Par / Buzkashi: Known as Kok Boru in Kyrgyzstan, Kok Par in Kazakhstan, and Buzkashi in Tajikistan and Afghanistan, is the pinnacle competition of the World Nomad Games (albeit, the three sports do have slightly different rules despite looking quite similar to spectators).

Similar to polo, two teams on horseback compete to place a goat carcass in the opposing team’s taikazan (goal circle).

Horseback Wrestling: Horseback wrestling, also known as Er Enish in Kyrgyzstan and Audaryspak in Kazakhstan, is a traditional nomadic sport where two riders compete to unseat each other from horseback.

The wrestlers, while riding their horses, use strength, balance, and technique to grab, push, or pull their opponent off their horse.

The goal is to throw the other rider to the ground, and the one who stays on their horse wins.

Horseback Archery: Combining precise marksmanship with expert horsemanship, archers shoot arrows at a target on horseback at full gallop.

Horseback Archery is a traditional sport practiced historically throughout Central Asia and Europe for training in hunting and warfare.

Baige: An endurance sport, Baige is a traditional long-distance horse race popular in Central Asia. Baige at World Nomad Games takes place on an 18 kilometer course.

Tenge Ilu: Demonstrating riding skills and dexterity, riders will lean off the side of their galloping horse without losing balance while the rider picks up coins from the ground

Games of Strength

Kurash: The aim of the game of Kurash is from a standing position to throw your opponent to the ground without using leg holds. Only throws and sweeps are allowed.

Mas-Wrestling: In Mas-Wrestling, opponents sit on opposite sides, facing each other, gripping a stick. To win, the mas-wrestler must pull the stick from their opponent’s hands or pull them to their side with the stick.

The name mas-wrestling originates from Yakutia but the sport is popular throughout the Arctic. I grew up playing mas-wrestling in Alaska as it was part of the Native Youth Olympics where we called it the stick pull.

Tug of War: A sport many grew up playing regardless of location. In Tug of War, two teams pull on a rope, trying to drag the other team across a line.

Qazaq Kuresi: Another form of wrestling, Qazaq Kuresi is a traditional wrestling form that originates from Kazakhstan. The wrestling must be conducted while standing and throws can only be done by grabbing belts, clothing, arms, or their opponent’s torso.

Strong Nomad: In the Strong Nomad competition, competitors must display feats of strength in five disciplines. These five disciplines are:

1. Carrying a 100 kilogram stone 10 meters
2. Sqats using a 100 kilogram bag
3. Squats while carrying a 130 kilogram log over the shoulders
4. Throwing a 10 kilogram javelin toward a target placed 10 meters from the competitor
5. Pulling a 200 kilogram Arba (cart) 10 meters

Alysh: A traditional belt wrestling sport that originates from Kyrgyzstan.

In Alysh, fighters attempt to grab their opponent’s belt and throw them onto their back.

Koresh: Popular throughout the Turkic-speaking world, Koresh is another form of belt wrestling in which competitors try to toss each other to the ground while holding onto their opponent’s belt.

Ashyrtmaly Aba Gureshi: Ashyrtmaly Aba Gureshi is a Turkish style of belt wrestling, Similar to Koresh.

Games of Skill

Kusbegilik: Kusbegilik encompasses various sports using birds of prey. The three Kusbegilik sports played at the World Nomad Games include:

• Burkit: hunting with a golden eagle
• Karshyga: hunting with a hawk
• Itelgi: hunting with a falcon

Traditional Archery: Several competitions of traditional archery take place at the World Nomad Games. Participants use conventional bows to shoot targets at various distances.

Ordo: Taking place in a 12 meter circle, Ordo is a strategic game in which players try to knock over sheep vertebrae using a small stone.

A team game played on a circular field where participants try to knock over pieces arranged in the center using a throwing stone.

Asyk Atu: A traditional game played throughout Central Asia that involves tossing asyks (knucklebones of sheep) at the asyks of their opponent with the intent to knock them out of the circle.

Games of Strategy

Togyzkumalak (Toguz Korgool): In the traditional Central Asian board game of Togyzkumalak (also known as Toguz Korgool), players attempt to gather the most pebbles by moving them between kazan (holes) on a board.

Mangala: A game of strategy, Mangala is an ancient Turkish board game played on a wooden board with pits in which players use small stones (or other small objects) as pieces. The Mangala players aim to collect as many of these pieces as possible.

Oware: Originating from West Africa, Oware is a board game with six holes in two rows in which players move small stones around in hopes of collecting more stones than their opponent.

Have any questions about the World Nomad Games?

Ask in the comments section below.

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