Tashkent, Uzbekistan, January 21, 2022: The National Olympic Committee of Uzbekistan celebrated its 30th anniversary on Friday, January 21.
The celebration was attended by the Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Minister of Tourism and Sports Aziz Abdukhakimov, NOC President Rustam Shaabdurakhmonov, National Paralympic Committee President Mukhtorkhon Tashkhodzhaev, veteran champions and Olympic medalists and other sports dignitaries who have devoted their lives to promoting the Olympic movement in Uzbekistan and establishing the NOC.
The event was led by the NOC Uzbekistan Secretary General, Oybek Kasimov, and featured a special video dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the NOC.
The NOC President said: “In a short time, the National Olympic Committee of Uzbekistan has brought cooperation with the International Olympic Committee, the Olympic Council of Asia and a number of international sports federations and organizations to a new level.”
He thanked the President, Shavkat Miromonovich Mirziyoyev, the Government and Ministry of Tourism and Sports for providing all possible support and creating an environment in which sport and recreation can flourish among the people and help to build a new Uzbekistan.
Igor Baraban, who was directly involved in the formation of the NOC and served as Vice President for many years, and Rustam Kurbanov, who headed the NOC from 2005-2009, highlighted the attention paid by the President and the Government to the development of the Olympic movement. Baraban handed a copy of the historical document - Protocol No. 1 on the establishment of the NOC of Uzbekistan - to the current NOC President Shaabdurakhmonov.
On behalf of Uzbekistan’s Olympians, Sydney 2000 champion Muhammadkodir Abdullayev, who presented the first gold medal at the Summer Olympic Games to Independent Uzbekistan, expressed his congratulations.
On behalf of the Government and Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Deputy Prime Minister Abdukhakimov said the celebrations had been curtailed by the pandemic but the occasion would be marked on a grander scale in the future with the involvement of the IOC, OCA and other major international sports organizations. He also said new sports schools would open soon in honour of eminent athletes such as gymnast Oksana Chusovitina and boxer Bakhodir Jalolov, highlighting the support of the Government.
Representatives of national sports federations and associations received souvenir gifts from the NOC for promoting sport and a healthy lifestyle for many years.
The event also celebrated the 80th birthday of the first Uzbek athlete to set a world record in weightlifting - Erkin Karimov.
