The kourach, an ancestral struggle

Uzbekistan's national sport is kurash (local wrestling), which has been practiced for thousands of years and is gaining recognition and adherents around the world year after year. Originally, wrestlers used to meet to measure their strength on big occasions: birth, wedding, birthday... The success of this sport became such that official competitions were organized very quickly. One of the most famous wrestlers of Uzbekistan was Pakhlavan Mahmud, in the 12th century, whose mausoleum is located in Khiva, Khorezm. Later, between two campaigns, Tamerlan soldiers spent their free time practicing kurash.

During the battle, the wrestlers had to remain standing. Each time a knee is put down, the referee stops the fight and the wrestlers resume their positions. The aim of the duel is to unbalance and to make the opponent fall completely by holds above the belt. The wrestlers, barefoot, are dressed in a yakhtak, a small light jacket falling at mid-thigh, blue or green, closed by a red belt, over white trousers.

Ulak, the traditional sport

This is the Uzbek version of the Afghan bozkatchi described by Kessel in his novel The Riders. A ram (or a goat) is beheaded, and the chavandozlar

(horsemen) fight over the body, with the winner of the melee then having to make a run before throwing the carcass into a circle drawn on the ground: the "circle of justice". During his ride, his opponents will try to take the booty in their turn and all blows are allowed. The game is extremely violent for both riders and mounts. In these countries of eminently equestrian culture, each village had its champion and an ulak was contested at each great occasion. If today, the games are becoming rarer, Ferghana hosts a few competitions, such as Samarkand, in March, on the occasion of Navrouz, the Eastern New Year's Day.

Beautiful hikes in perspective

Uzbekistan's landscape and relief, especially in the south and east of the country, are ideal for beautiful hiking. If this activity is still little developed compared to the possibilities, more and more agencies offer excursions over one or more days, especially in the mountains. It is also possible to go on a trek in search of the abandoned wrecks on the bottom of the former Aral Sea.

Ecotourism and horseback riding on the nomadic trail

In the desert areas, especially along the Kazakh border, nomadism - moreover, transhumance - remains widespread. A few Uzbek yurts are available to those who choose to go and meet these populations. Here too, agencies offer tours allowing an immersion of a few days in the nomadic tradition. On the program, starry skies at night above the yurts, horseback riding in the valleys and discovery of the nomadic way of life. Unless you opt for a camel camel ride in the desert. Just as typical!

Long live the thrills!

In Uzbekistan, the great diversity of landscapes allows many activities for travellers in search of adrenaline. In summer, some tour operators offer climbing, rafting and canyoning to take advantage of the relief, while in winter there are ski touring (or heli-skiing for those with the means) in the Pamir mountains or in the foothills of the Tian Shan. It is also these peaks that attract climbers from all over the world. It is also possible from Uzbekistan to organize an ascent of the Lenin or Communism peaks in neighbouring Kyrgyzstan. Notice to the amateurs!