Uzbekistan at the Olympics
The Central Asian nation of Uzbekistan first competed at the Olympic Games as a sovereign country in 1996 and has participated in every Olympiad from then on. Prior to that, athletes from the region of Uzbekistan competed at the Olympic Games under the former country of the Soviet Union from 1952 up to 1988. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Uzbekistan were part of the Unified Team in 1992.
The majority of the medals won by Uzbek athletes come from wrestling and boxing. The nation also earned medals in other sports such as weightlifting, judo and gymnastics.
Judoka Armen Bagdasarov earned the Uzbekistan’s first medal at the Olympics by taking the silver medal in the men’s 86 kg division.
The nation’s first gold medal was won by Mahammatkodir Abdoollayev who went undefeated in the men’s lightweight category in boxing at the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympic Games.
Uzbekistan’s National Olympic Committee was incepted in 1992 and acknowledged by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) one year later. The nation is also an emerging power in the Asian Games.
Trivia
- Uzbekistan's most decorated Olympian is freestyle wrestler Artur Taymazov who has won three golds and one silver.
Related Pages
- Uzbekistan at the Winter Olympics
- Information about the Soviet Union at the Olympics
- About sport in Uzbekistan
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