On September 4, the World Akhal-Teke Championship will get underway in Kronenberg, the Netherlands — an event that is already attracting the attention of the international community.
The first championship of this scale in history will bring together representatives of Turkmenistan, namely the State Association “Türkmen atlary” and the renowned “Galkynyş” National Equestrian Games Group, with horse breeders from the Akhal-Teke Horse Association of Europe (ATHA), an international non-profit organization registered in Luxembourg.
Over the course of three days, the Peelbergen Equestrian Centre, one of Europe’s largest and most modern equestrian facilities, located near the borders with Belgium and Germany, will welcome breeders, owners, riders, trainers and enthusiasts from around the world.
The competition programme will showcase every aspect of equestrian excellence. The first championship classes will feature young stallions aged from one to four years, followed by the adult horses and the selection of the absolute world champion. Alongside the conformation judging, spectacular dressage and show-jumping competitions will be held, while the beauty contest for Akhal-Teke horses will bring together the animal’s natural grace and the rich cultural heritage of the Turkmen people.
The traditional adornment of Akhal-Teke horses — silver ornaments and protective alaja charms — is not merely decoration, but an entire visual culture created around the horse. Guests will have an opportunity to delve deeper into the national heritage at an exhibition and fair dedicated to Turkmen equestrian art. It will feature works of jewelry and decorative applied arts, including horse tack, carpets, paintings and sculptures celebrating the beauty of the legendary horses.
Away from the sporting arena, an international scientific conference dedicated to the history and development of the breed, veterinary and breeding practices, genetics, preservation of breed purity, and the influence of Akhal-Teke horses on global equestrian culture will be held in the nearby city of Venray.
In anticipation of this grand event, the international press has already dubbed the Akhal-Teke horses the “living gold of the Karakums” and “golden stallions.” And this is no mere poetic exaggeration. The first thing that captivates observers when looking at these graceful horses is their coat, which seems to glow from within.
Foreign experts and horse breeders have often marveled at the extraordinary nature of this coloration — shimmering like polished gold or gleaming with copper-bronze and silvery hues. Specialists from the International Scientific and Technological Park of the Academy of Sciences of Turkmenistan have devoted a scientific study to this unique coloration, thoroughly investigating the nature of this rare phenomenon in their work.
In our country, the current year is being held under the motto “Independent Neutral Turkmenistan – the Homeland of Purposeful Winged Horses,” and the grand championship being held in Europe will become a vivid international embodiment of the central idea behind this motto.
Going far beyond the framework of traditional competitions, this event marks the creation of a fundamental bridge between continents. It opens a new era of professional dialogue, in which the unique centuries-old experience of Turkmen seyis and the advanced scientific achievements of European horse breeding are united for the principal goal — preserving, developing and ensuring the prosperity of the priceless heritage of humanity, the Akhal-Teke breed.
