Tashkent, Uzbekistan, December 26, 2022: Muzaffarbek Turoboyev and Svetlana Osipova were crowned Male and Female Athlete of the Year, respectively, at the Uzbekistan National Sports Award 2022 on Friday, December 23.
Judo world champion Turoboyev, 22, and taekwondo world champion Osipova, also 22, won the top two prizes at a glittering awards ceremony which was opened by the Minister of Sports Development, Adham Ikramov.
Among the dignitaries was Uzbekistan NOC Secretary General Oybek Kasimov.
On a night when athletes and para-athletes were recognised for their deeds in 2022, the Olympic Council of Asia was also acknowledged as the Best Organiser of International Events – one of them being the OCA Development Programme for coaches and referees in Tashkent in November when more than 200 participants from 12 National Olympic Committees across Central and South Asia took part.
For both Turoboyev and Osipova, 2022 was an unforgettable year as they were not only crowned world champions in the heavyweight class in their respective sports but they also won gold medals at the 5th Islamic Solidarity Games in Konya, Turkey.
Other awards were:
Coach: Ilias Iliadis (judo)
Young Athlete: Gulsevar Ganiyeva (women’s boxing)
Discovery of the Year: Sharifa Davronova (16, women’s triple jump)
National Team: Weightlifting
Male Paralympian: Server Ibragimov (shooting)
Female Paralympian: Guljanoy Naimova (taekwondo)
Federation: Chess Federation.
