An international competition among Akhalteke horses is planned to be held in the new city of Arkadag (Turkmenistan) on 27 April 2024. The Neutral Turkmenistan newspaper reports that the president signed a decree to this effect "in order to increase the world glory of Akhalteke horses, which are a national treasure".
The document also ordered to hold contests among artists, sculptors, carpet makers, jewellers, designers, photographers and cameramen for artistic embodiment of the image of Akhalteke horses.
These horses were first described more than 3,000 years ago. The American non-governmental organisation Livestock Conservancy has listed the Akhalteke horse breed as threatened: according to various data, there are about 7,000 of them left in the world.
The organisation notes that despite common Western beliefs, the Akhal-Teke almost certainly predates the development of the Arabian horse. Furthermore, historically Turkmenian stocks had profound influence on the development of horse breeds in Europe, and most notably the English Thoroughbred.
"It is now hypothesized that at least two of the three founding sires of the Thoroughbred had Turkmenian blood, and were likely Akhal-Tekes".
The most famous member of this unique breed is Absent, who won an Olympic gold medal in dressage in 1960, with a total of six medals in his career - more than an individual horse has ever won.
In 1935, a group of riders on Akhalteke stallions travelled 2,500 miles from Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, to Moscow, Russia, in 84 days. One part of the journey was a 225-mile crossing of the Karakum Desert. Ashgabat is home to the headquarters of the International Akhal-Teke Horse Association, and UNESCO inscribed Turkmenistan's local horse breeding as a World Heritage List.
Eziz Boyarov
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