Kokpar returns to Kazakhstan with changed rules ^{CEFR B2}

The traditional horseback game kokpar is reappearing at hippodromes and online in Kazakhstan, attracting local audiences and tourists. A feature by Albert Otkjaer, first published in Vlast.kz on September 18, 2025, describes evening matches where ten riders on Karabair horses charge a stuffed leather sack toward a donut-shaped goal called a tai kazan. Organisers have adapted the game: the field is smaller, goals are softer or made of hay, teams are three-a-side rather than four, and the goat carcass is replaced by a 25-kilo dummy. The official Kazakh rules even allow scoring by drawing a circle on the field.

The revival is driven by local governments, clubs and social media. Daniyar Daukey’s club posts highlights to more than 50,000 followers, and matches have drawn participants from the UAE and the US. Foreign polo players tried kokpar in 2017, and in 2019 Daukey and ten teammates performed at a hunting festival in Fontainebleau, France, before 17,000 spectators. Still, funding remains a challenge for foreign tours.

Safety is a major concern. The sport is fast and physical, with common injuries such as concussions, trampling and high-speed collisions. In Kyrgyzstan a player died earlier this year, the third such fatality in seven years. Anthropologist Ulan Bigozhin of Nazarbayev University says kokpar grew more aggressive since Soviet times and that larger horses increase intensity. Aidarbek Khodzhanazarov, president of the Kokpar Federation and an MP, plans a new league but has made controversial remarks after a disputed Nomad Games final. Organisers and experts say safety must come first. Daukey predicts growing domestic popularity in five years, wider regional interest in 10 years and international growth in 15 years.