Articles by Ilyas Omarov

Kazakhstan National Football Team Presents New Kits

ASTANA – The Kazakhstan Football Federation (KFF) and the Errea Sport company have unveiled new kits for the national football team in Astana on May 24 as part of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) equipment support program. Last year, KFF and UEFA agreed to create and provide new football kits for the national…

Astana Hosts 10th Asian Indoor Athletics Championships

ASTANA – The 10th Asian Indoor Athletics Championships took place in the Kazakh capital on Feb. 10-12. The tournament brought together approximately 300 athletes from 30 countries who competed in 26 disciplines. Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov, who attended the opening ceremony on Feb. 10, delivered a welcome letter from President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. “Sport knows no…

Fifth Digital Almaty 2023 Forum ‘Digs Deeper’ into World of High Tech

ALMATY – The fifth Digital Almaty 2023 forum held Feb.2-3 in the southern capital of Kazakhstan, brought together 30,000 participants from more than 30 countries, representing more than 400 companies. More than 150 people attended the forum and more than 250 exhibitions were put on display. Kazakhstan is one of the leaders in the ongoing…

Snowstorm Football Match Between Kazakhstan and Moldova Captivates Fans in UEFA Nations League

NUR-SULTAN – A real football thriller was played out by the national teams of Kazakhstan and Moldova in the qualifier to keep a place in Division C of the UEFA Nations League. Despite a raging snow storm that almost paralyzed the transport system of the Kazakh capital in the evening rush hour on March 29, the…

Kazakhstan – Ukraine: Tie is Equal to Victory

NUR-SULTAN – The national football team of Kazakhstan played a match in the qualification of Mundial 2022 with the national team Ukraine Sept. 1 in Nur-Sultan. Two teams have already met in west Ukrainian city Lviv, and then our team took one point and played a sensational tie. The Ukrainian team, which is one of…

Simply the Best: STARchenko

Kazakh athlete Roman Starchenko was named the best hockey player of the past season. The 35-year-old forward in the Kontinental Hockey League for the Barys hockey club from Nur-Sultan and captain of the Kazakhstan national team won by a solid margin. Some 19 hockey’s journalists took part in a special survey of the directorate of…

Thank you Riga, Hello Helsinki and Tampere

OSLO – The preliminary matches of the 2021 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship has become one of the most sensational in the modern history of hockey. It is pleasant to note that the national team of Kazakhstan became one of the authors of such sensations. The Kazakhstan national ice hockey team finished the world championship…

Snow Leopards Lost to Vikings, but Not Lose Hope for Playoffs

OSLO – Sport has always been interesting for its intrigue. We were convinced of this when the Kazakh national team played their final against the Norwegian team. With their own chances of advancing gone, Norway was motivated to play the role of spoiler in its last game of the 2021 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship and…

Kazakhstan Crushes Italy and Rewrites History

OSLO – In the sixth match of the Ice Hockey World Championship, the national team of Kazakhstan defeated the Italian team with a crushing score of 11-3. This result was the largest victory in the current tournament. Аnd it is very pleasant to note that this victory was won by the Kazakh team. Kazakhstan got…

Kazakhstan Gives Maple Leaves Chance to Play Offs

OSLO – On Friday the national team of Kazakhstan, after a hard fight with Canada, gives the Maple Leaves a playoff chance, losing 2-4.  Before the match, the website of the International Ice Hockey Federation published an article “Fathers and Sons” dedicated to father and son Mikhailis –  head coach Yuri and one of the…

Kazakhstan Stops Germany’s Machine at Ice Hockey World Championship

OSLO – In the fourth game of the World Championships using every weapon in its arsenal, the national team of Kazakhstan ended Germany’s winning streak at three games with a 3-2 victory on Wednesday in Riga. Pavel Akolzin scored the go-ahead goal on a late third-period breakaway. Both sides stuck with their starting goalies in…

Sports Diplomacy in the History of Independent Kazakhstan

NUR-SULTAN – Sports, along with politics, economy, and culture, is one of the main elements of the global information agenda. The performances of the best athletes at the most prestigious international competitions are important for all countries.  Kazakhstan is no exception. Kazakh athletes take part in international sports tournaments, including the Olympic Games, world championships,…

Ten HC Barys facts from 10th KHL season

ASTANA – Despite the fact that the 10th regular Continental Hockey League (KHL) Championship is not over yet, for the fans of Astana Barys it has become a mere formality, since their favourites, for the first time in history, have lost their chances for the playoffs a few rounds before the end of the regular…

Olympian Alzhan Zharmukhamedov attends ‘Going Vertical’ premiere in Astana

ASTANA – The Olympic champion of 1972 in basketball in Munich Alzhan Zharmukhamedov recently visited Astana. In the Kazakh capital, he took part in the premiere of the Russian film “Going Vertical,” which tells of the historic victory of the USSR basketball team over the U.S. team in the 1972 Olympic finals. Zharmukhamedov is the…

Barys fifth in Eastern Conference following one third of KHL matches

ASTANA – Following two games played last weekend, HC Barys Astana has completed 22 matches or more than one third of the scheduled matches of the regular Continental Hockey League’s (KHL) Championship. Barys had an impressive start this season and even occupied the first position in the KHL’s Eastern Conference for some time. Then the…

HC Barys has impressive start in KHL’s 10th season

ASTANA – HC Barys played four home games to start the 10th season of the Continental Hockey League’s (KHL) regular championship. The Snow Leopards (the team’s name translated from Kazakh) opened Aug. 24 with a win against HC Spartak Moscow. The victory came with a low “football-type score” of 2-0. The hosts backed down, however,…

Barys begins 10th KHL season with roster of fresh faces

ASTANA – Barys Astana will begin the regular season of the Continental Hockey League (KHL) on Aug. 24 without some of its key players: the snow leopards will play without longtime leader Brandon Bochenski, who has ended his storied KHL career; as well as leading centre Dustin Boyd, who moved to Dynamo Moscow. Only Nigel…

Canada Hockey Day held at Astana’s Barys Arena

ASTANA – Canada Hockey Day at the capital’s Barys Arena May 21 marked the 25th anniversary of Kazakh-Canadian diplomatic relations, 150th anniversary of Canada and 60th anniversary of ice hockey in Kazakhstan. Some senior Kazakh officials attended the festival, including First Deputy Prime Minister Askar Amin, who also serves as president of the Kazakhstan Ice…

HC Barys out of Gagarin Cup playoffs, loses in second round

The Barys hockey club, much to the regret of its large army of fans, ended its playoff runin the second round of the Gagarin Cup playoffs of the Continental Hockey League with a loss to Metallurg Magnitogorsk, the current Gagarin Cup holder. Barys lost in all four games of the series – 0:4, 4:5 (OT),…

Barys has early Gagarin Cup success, stumbles at home

ASTANA – HC Barys had a successful first round of the Gagarin Cup playoffs, beating Traktor from Chelyabinsk. For the overall victory in that series, it was enough for the “snow leopards” to play six matches, in four of which the club from Astana was stronger. Except for the first two matches in Chelyabinsk, where…

Barys Astana to Play Traktor Chelyabinsk in First Round of Gagarin Cup

ASTANA – HC Barys finished fifth in the regular season of the Eastern Conference of the Continental Hockey League (KHL) and progressed to the Gagarin Cup playoffs for the eighth time. The previous season was the only season the Kazakh club failed to make the playoffs. Barys won 90 points and will now meet HC…

Barys Nears Securing Place in Gagarin Cup Playoffs

ASTANA – With a narrow 1:0 victory on home ice over Dinamo Riga last weekend, the Barys hockey club virtually secured its place in the Gagarin Cup playoffs three rounds before the end of the regular season of the Continental Hockey League (KHL). Now, the “snow leopards” occupy the fifth spot in the Eastern Conference…

Nazarov Fired from Barys, Kazakhstan’s National Team

ASTANA – Hockey Club Barys recently terminated early the contract of head coach Andrey Nazarov. The team suffered three straight away losses at the start of a regular season at the Continental Hockey League (KHL) at the hands of Metallurg Novokuznetsk (2:4), Sibir Novosibirsk (1:5), and Avangard Omsk (1:3). The 42-year old Nazarov first headed…

President Abdel Fattakh el-Sisi: Egypt, Kazakhstan Have Good Prospects for Trade, Investment Cooperation

                                          In an exclusive interview with The Astana Times following his visit to Astana in February 2016, discussed trade, history and politics.   What have been the main outcomes of your recent visit to Kazakhstan?…

Barys Fails to Reach Gagarin Cup Playoffs for First Time in Eight Years

The Barys Astana hockey club has missed the Continental Hockey League (KHL) Gagarin Cup playoffs for the first time in eight years despite a Feb. 18 shootout victory over hockey club Avangard Omsk in the last game of the regular season.     The Kazakh team missed the playoffs by one point as, two days…