Astana Pro Team’s Vincenzo Nibali Wins Giro d’Italia 2016
TURIN – The Astana Pro Team, part of the Presidential Sports Club, once again confirmed its status as one of the best cycling teams in the world. Captain Vincenzo Nibali proved he has strong spirits, winning the Giro d’Italia 2016 after a poor second week at the multi-day event. The race was held May 6-29…
Astana Hosting AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships
ASTANA – The Amateur International Boxing Association (AIBA) women’s world championships opened May 19 in the capital. This year, the tournament’s already high status rose even further. In the rings inside Barys Arena, not only world championship medals, but licenses to participate in the upcoming Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, are contested. Two hundred…
Shumenov Claims WBA Regular World Champion Title in First Heavyweight Division
Kazakh professional boxer Beibut Shumenov recently earned his 17th victory and the WBA regular champion belt in the first heavyweight division in Las Vegas with a technical knockout in the 10th round over American fighter Junior Anthony Wright. Shumenov had previously won the WBA light heavyweight world title and with his Las Vegas win becomes…
Team Kazakhstan Falls from IIHF World Championships Top Division
ASTANA – The eighth attempt in history for the team of Kazakhstan to stay in the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championships Top Division, which this year is taking place in Russia, proved unsuccessful. Having started the tournament with a victory over Switzerland and a very decent game against the hosts of the tournament…
Kazakh Hockey Team Wins World Championship Opener but Falls to Russia, Norway
The Kazakh national hockey beat the Swiss national team in a shootout May 7 to win its first match of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championships. This year’s championships are being played in Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia. The win for the Andrei Nazarov-managed team earned them two points in Group A against…
Thousands Ride in Astana to Commemorate Great Patriotic War
ASTANA – More than 2,000 people, including well-known professional athletes, participated in a bike ride in Astana May 7 to commemorate the 71st anniversary of the Soviet people’s Victory in the Great Patriotic War against Nazi Germany (and the Second World War in Europe). The race started from the square in front of the Saltanat…
Astana Arlans Defeat Venezulean Contender, Reach WSB Semifinal
The Astana Arlans boxing club, part of the Astana Presidential Professional Sports Club continues to defend its title in the World Series Boxing (WSB). Two-time WSB Champions Arlans completed their goal to get past the quarterfinal in style, crushing the Venezuela Caciques April 23, taking the second leg 5-0 to secure a resounding 9-1 win…
Judo Athletes from 80 Countries to Compete in Stage of World Grand Prix in Almaty
Following the Judo World Championships last August in Astana, Kazakhstan will once again host a major international judo tournament. On May 13-15, Almaty will host the International Judo Federation’s Grand Prix stage. Athletes from more than 80 countries are expected to attend. The tournament will bring together the strongest tatami masters to challenge the rating…
Timur Kulibayev Elected Vice-President of Olympic Council of Asia
President of Kazakhstan’s National Olympic Committee (NOC) Timur Kulibayev was elected April 13 Vice-President of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA). According to the NOC’s press service, his candidacy was unanimously approved by the Olympic Council of Asia Executive Committee, headed by the organisation President Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah. Commenting on his appointment, the head…
Kazakh Boxing Team Wins Full Set of Olympic Bids for First Time
At the end of a qualifying Olympic tournament in Asia and Oceania, which was recently held in Qian’an, China, the men’s national boxing team of Kazakhstan won a complete set of bids to the Summer Olympics in Rio. In total, the Kazakh team has now won all the11 boxing licenses up for grabs. For the…
Team Kazakhstan Earns Draw in Spring Friendly in Georgia
Kazakhstan’s national football team drew Georgia 1:1 in a friendly match March 29 at the Boris Paichadze Dynamo Arena in Tbilisi. A bit of intrigue ahead of the match was added by the fact that Georgia’s team is now managed by Slovak coach Vladimir Weiss, who for the three last years led one of Kazakh…
Astana Arlans Defeat Uzbek Tigers to Secure WSB Playoffs Spot
The Astana Arlans boxing club inflicted a major 4:1 defeat upon strong rivals Uzbek Tigers April 2 and reached the quarterfinals of the World Series Boxing (WSB), 4:1. The visitors took the lead before the start of the game, which took place in Ust-Kamenogorsk. Arlans boxer Zakir Safiullin had to leave the city shortly before…
Record 64 Countries Register for Almaty 2017 Winter Universiade
ASTANA – Student athletes from a record 64 countries have signed on to participate in the Almaty 2017 Winter Universiade, the Universiade’ s organising committee announced April 5. National athletic federations from Europe, Asia, America, Africa and Oceania have registered for the games. The participation surpasses the previous record of 52 countries, which participated in…
Arlans Secure WSB Playoff Spot with 5-0 Thrashing of Puerto Rico Hurricanes
The World Series of Boxing (WSB) title holders Astana Arlans secured a spot in the WSB playoffs on March 26 in Petropavlovsk with a 5:0 victory over the Puerto Rico Hurricanes 5:0. The Arlans now have 12 points and are in second place in group D behind newcomers the Uzbek Tigers. The Arlans fighter Samat…
Kazakhstan’s National Football Team Beats Azerbaijan in Friendly Match
The Kazakh national team beat their Azerbaijani counterparts 1-0 in a friendly match played April 26 in Antalya, Turkey. Midfielder Maksat Baizhanov kicked the winning goal. The Kazakhstan Football Federation entrusted the leadership of the country’s main team to two home-grown professionals – Talgat Baisufinov and Nurken Mazbaev, a well-known former player and one of…
Kazakhs Out of Davis Cup after Thriller with Djokovic-Led Serbia
In an intriguing confrontation, Team Kazakhstan gave way to Serbia 3-2 in the first leg of the Davis Cup World Group. The match took place March 4-6 in Belgrade. Immediately after the draw, it became clear Kazakhstan would be facing a tough test. Kazakh fans had reason to believe in a better outcome by the…
Football Season Kicks off in Kazakhstan
In Kazakhstan, where football is played outside March-November, almost 15,000 spectators witnessed the new season open March 8 at Astana Arena. The Kazakhstan Supercup match pitted two of last year’s best clubs, Premier League champion FC Astana and tournament runner-up and Kazakhstan Cup holder FC Kairat Almaty. The Kazakh Premier League, the nation’s highest football…
Kazakh Rider Finishes in Top 10 at UCI World Track Cycling Championships
Kazakhstan national cycling team rider Artyom Zakharov finished in the top 10 at the March 2-6 UCI Track Cycling World Championships, increasing his changes of receiving a bid to the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, the Kazakhstan Cycling Federation’s (KCF) press service reported. “I want to thank everyone who believed in me. Tenth place…
Astana Arlans Win in Baku Following Defeat in Tashkent
World Series of Boxing (WSB) reigning champions the Astana Arlans continue to defend their title in the league’s sixth season. Last week the Kazakh roster won an important away victory in Azerbaijan, overcoming opposition from one of the league’s strongest franchises to defeat the Baku Fires 3-2. Azeri athlete Nasraddin Mammadov began impressively in the…
Kazakhstan Takes Bronze at Euro Futsal 2016
ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s national team caused a sport sensation, taking bronze in their debut at the European Futsal Championship (Euro Futsal 2016) held in Belgrade Feb. 2–13. Kazakhstan’s team, led by coach Ricardo Camara Sobral, better known in futsal as Cacau, defeated their Serbian hosts 5:2 to take third place and enter the top 10…
Astana Pro Team Cyclist Andriy Grivko Wins La Méditerranéenne
ASTANA – Astana Pro Team rider Andriy Grivko won the overall standings of the stage race La Méditerranéenne, which recently took place on the roads of Spain, France and Italy. The 32-year-old Ukrainian national took the lead after the third stage, which he won. In the fourth and last stage, he did not lose the…
Perfetto, Kazakhstan!
Team Kazakhstan became the main sensation of Futsal EURO 2016 continuing in Belgrade, Serbia. In the quarterfinal, the debutants crushed reigning champion Italy, 5-2. “We want to go down in history!” said Kazakhstan’s head coach Cacau (Ricardo Sobral) before the Feb. 9 match. His words turned out to be prophetic. The 44-year-old Brazilian’s team came…
Team Kazakhstan Reaches Quarter Final in Futsal Euro Debut
ASTANA – The Kazakh national futsal team reached the quarterfinals in its first-ever appearance at the UEFA Futsal Championship (Futsal Euro), which is taking place this year Feb. 2–13 in Belgrade, Serbia. Futsal is a variant of soccer played indoors on a smaller field. Kazakhstan’s record of success in the sport is associated with AFC…
