15 years ago, on February 28, 2007, President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov was elected Chairman of the National Olympic Committee of Turkmenistan. Over the years, colossal work has been done in the country to develop mass sports and elite sports, to promote the Olympic movement and Olympic ideals. Huge state investments were directed to the creation of the most modern sports infrastructure, including those intended for the development of Olympic sports in Turkmenistan, the training of athletes, coaches and other sports specialists. Over the past years, the country has established and constantly expanded cooperation with the UN International Bureau of Sport for Development and Peace, the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee on Physical Culture and Sport, the World Health Organization, the International Olympic Committee and the Olympic Council of Asia.
Three years later, the recognition of Turkmenistan's merits in the development of sports and the Olympic movement was the decision of the Olympic Council of Asia announced in the capital of Kuwait to delegate the right to host the V Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games to Ashgabat, which became the first capital in Central Asia to host the Asian Games.
Held on an Olympic scale in September 2017, the Ashgabat-2017 Games were highly appreciated by the international sports community and became a special contribution of our country to the international sports and Olympic movement. Especially for the Asian Games in the Turkmen capital, an Olympic village was built at a cost of almost 5 billion US dollars. In this unique facility, which has no analogues in the Central Asian region, about 40 facilities were erected on an area of 157 hectares, including 16 sports facilities for holding national and international competitions in various sports. Hotels for athletes and participants, residential complexes, canteens, medical facilities, cultural and entertainment facilities were also built, equipped in accordance with all the requirements of the International Olympic Committee for multi-sport facilities.
Speaking at the congress "Asian Games - 2017: international sports cooperation for the sake of peace and progress", President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov emphasized that sports and the Olympic movement should be aimed at strengthening interstate ties, promoting friendship, mutual understanding and rapprochement of peoples, helping the UN to successfully implement global sustainable development strategy. As the Turkmen leader noted, “we directly correlate the sports movement, following the ideals of Olympism with the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals aimed at maximizing the human potential, fulfilling global tasks in the field of healthcare, education, creating conditions for the harmonious spiritual and physical development of the individual.”
At the 34th meeting of the General Assembly of the Olympic Council of Asia, held in Ashgabat, President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov was awarded the Association of National Olympic Committees for his outstanding role in the development of the sports movement. The high award was presented to the Turkmen leader by the head of the Association, Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, who expressed gratitude for the constant support of the Olympic movement in Turkmenistan.
Under the leadership of the Chairman of the National Olympic Committee of Turkmenistan, President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, our country has taken a worthy place on the sports map of the world, becoming the venue for other major sporting events such as the Asian Sambo Championship, the Asian Kickboxing Championship, the World Weightlifting Championship, etc. At the same time, Turkmen athletes are increasingly participating in prestigious sports competitions, raising the country's prestige in the world sports community. The silver medal of the Turkmen sportswoman Polina Guryeva in weightlifting competitions in the weight category up to 59 kg at the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo became a logical result of the efforts made in Turkmenistan to develop Olympism and a vivid symbol of its sporting achievements.
As the head of a neutral country, committed to the principles of peace and friendship between peoples, ending hostility and uniting people of different nationalities in its domestic and foreign policy, President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov took part in the opening ceremony of the XXIV Winter Olympic Games in China as an honored guest. At a meeting in Beijing with President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping, the head of Turkmenistan stressed that in the modern world, sport is called upon to be a priority component of international cooperation, to make a significant contribution to the formation of an atmosphere of trust, respect and mutual understanding.
