Ashgabat was declared the City of New Sports Opportunities of the Commonwealth. This decision was made, at the meeting of the CIS Council of Heads of Government held in the Turkmen capital on May 24, 2024, with the aim of expanding sports cooperation. At the same time, the heads of government instructed the Council for Physical Culture and Sports to develop a draft Action Plan for 2024-2025, aimed at implementing this initiative.
"The adoption of the Decision of the CIS Council of Heads of Government to declare Ashgabat the City of New Sports Opportunities of the Commonwealth is a new confirmation of the increased interest of CIS partners in recent years in implementing joint large-scale sports projects, an important contribution of Turkmenistan to the practical implementation of the Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Physical Culture and Sports of the CIS States, as well as to strengthening the traditionally established friendly ties between the peoples of the Commonwealth countries," the press service of the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth of Independent States commented on the decision.
As noted at the meeting, Turkmenistan regularly acts as the initiator and organizer of large international sports competitions and forums in various sports. For example, in 2017, Ashgabat successfully hosted the 5th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, which brought together 5,000 top athletes from 62 countries competing for medals in 21 sports.
In 2018, at the initiative of Turkmenistan, the UN General Assembly established the World Bicycle Day, which is now celebrated annually on June 3. In the same year, the international rally "Amul-Khazar 2018", the route of which ran along the historic Silk Road, and the World Weightlifting Championships were held with great success. In 2023, Turkmenistan hosted the XIV Kurash World Championship, and in 2024, an international ice hockey tournament with the participation of 10 teams.
In recent years, Turkmenistan has intensified its participation in sports cooperation between the CIS countries. On October 14, 2022, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov, at the meeting of Council of Heads of State of the CIS, proposed holding Friendship Games with the participation of athletes from the CIS countries and other countries wishing to take part in them. Currently, this initiative is under consideration by the Council for Physical Culture and Sports of the CIS member states, in which representatives of Turkmenistan have been participating since 2023.
At the 2nd CIS Games held in 2023 in Belarus, Turkmen athletes won 18 medals, including 3 silver and 15 bronze, confirming the high level of Turkmen sports.
