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Athletes gathered in Ibradı, a mountainous district in Türkiye's southern Antalya province, for a Kokboru tournament and traditional equestrian sports demonstration, organized jointly by the Türkiye Traditional Equestrian Sports Federation (TGASDF) and the İbradı Municipality.
Kokboru, a horseback sport in which riders compete to carry a goat carcass into a scoring zone, is one of the most popular traditional games among Turkic communities in Central Asia, though it has not historically been played in Anatolia.
World Ethnosport Confederation President Bilal Erdogan said the event aims to introduce the Central Asian sport to Türkiye while promoting cirit, a traditional Anatolian equestrian game, among Turkic communities abroad.
He noted that Kyrgyz teams already competed in Kokboru, while other participating teams learned the sport for the tournament.
Erdogan said the World Ethnosport Confederation, which describes itself as the world's largest umbrella organization for traditional sports, began its work in 2015 to preserve cultural heritage and traditional practices for future generations.
TGASDF President Hakan Kazanci said the federation, founded a decade ago under the Ethnosport Confederation, has worked to promote traditional sports across Türkiye.
He said the Ibradi event marked the launch of a new Kokboru league and thanked those involved in organizing it.
The event was attended by Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism Gokhan Yazgi, Antalya Governor Hulusi Sahin, Ibradı Mayor Hatice Sekmen, Provincial Police Chief Sabit Akın Zaimoglu, athletes and local residents.
Participants also performed traditional equestrian sports demonstrations as part of the program.
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