Tajiks Need Sporting Chance

A recent meeting of 20 national sports federations in the capital Dushanbe discussed the funding crisis facing sports and how the situation could be turned round.

Athlete Ajmal Amirov says the Tajikistan’s performance in international competitions as the country does not have a single world-class stadium.

“When I ask people why they’re ending their sporting career, they say there’s no future in it. There’s no future for sport in Tajikistan,” he said.

The martial art Taekwondo is an exception to the rule – it has a world champion, Daler Saifiddinov.

The head of the Taekwondo Federation, Mirsaid Yahyoev, says that in an environment of low government funding, sports have to fend for themselves in the market economy. But it is very hard to find commercial sponsors, especially amidst the ongoing economic crisis, and Yahyoev says Taekwondo experts have turned to advertising products to make some money.

Muhammadali Mirzoev, deputy head of the national committee for youth, sport and tourism, says the government is providing what it can in the way of funding, and also actively encouraging private firms and state institutions to act as sponsors.

Abdufattoh Shafiev, who runs the Tajikistan Football website, says the government does not need to fully fund sports, but should simply ensure that the law allows commercial investors to profit from their activity.

The audio programme, in Russian and Tajik, went out on national radio stations in Tajikistan, as part of IWPR project work funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.