The sixth World Nomad Games opened Sunday at the newly built Bishkek Arena, drawing delegations from more than 100 countries and dozens of heads of state who were already in the Kyrgyz capital for a Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.
More than 3,000 athletes from 104 nations paraded into the stadium, including a 517-strong Kyrgyz delegation that drew the loudest applause of the night from a crowd estimated at around 30,000 to 50,000. Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov opened the ceremony, saying sporting competition could help strengthen friendship among peoples.
Among the visiting dignitaries were Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, among others. Belarus sent a nine-athlete delegation competing in arm-wrestling, belt wrestling and sambo.
One notable absence was Chinese President Xi Jinping, who was in Bishkek for the SCO summit but skipped the opening ceremony. A Kyrgyz presidential spokesman said Xi stayed away because of deadly flooding and landslides in Tibet, where rescue efforts were ongoing, and that his bilateral meetings in Kyrgyzstan would proceed as planned.
The opening coincided with Kyrgyzstan’s celebration of 35 years of independence. This year’s Games, running through September 6, feature 43 disciplines rooted in nomadic and equestrian tradition, and mark a return to Kyrgyzstan after the event was hosted in Turkey in 2022 and Kazakhstan in 2024. The United Nations has recognized the Games, first held in 2014, as a platform for intercultural dialogue. Russia has reportedly expressed interest in hosting the 2028 edition.
Local media noted that portions of the new Bishkek Arena, officially set to open in October, remained unfinished for Sunday’s ceremony.
