Why Kazakhs are better at summer sports than winter

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ALMATY. KAZINFORM - Most Kazakh athletes participating in the Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang cannot get in the top 10 strongest performers. Kazinform tried to find out the causes and solutions while the achievements of bronze winner Yuliya Galysheva were praised at the Almaty Academy of Tourism and Sport.

For the last 25 years of independence Kazakhstan has won 132 medals in the Summer Olympics (43 of them are gold medals) and only 8 olympic awards (1 gold) in winter sports.

President of the Academy Kairat Zakiryanov is certain that the reasons of such a gap are obvious.

"We could allege that summer sports are closer to Kazakhstan citizens and that we are not prone to winter sports but that would be incorrect. It depends on the material base and coach staff. Unfortunately many sports facilities of Almaty are frequently not used as intended. Winter Sports College construction project has not been finished. Trainer and coach staff are prepared only in our institution," Kairat Zakiryanov stated.

Freestyle mogul athletes who have won the only bronze medal in PyeongChang also experience lack of coaches.

"In Kazakhstan mogul has been developing for a long time. In early 1990s Alexey Bannikov was among 15 top of the world cups on a regular basis, and participated in 5 Olympiads. Later on the new generation emerged - Dmitry Barmashov, Dmitriy Reikherd. At present mogul is popular only in East Kazakhstan region. In Almaty there is equipment to make tracks for mogul at Shymbulak where we practiced this year and before the Olympiad. However to hold national championship in Almaty whilst all 50 participants are in East Kazakhstan region is not financially expedient. To open a functioning school in Almaty we need coach staff which we do not have in Kazakhstan. Not all athletes become coaches after they end the carrier," Yuliya Galysheva's coach, Vice President of the Federation of Freestyle and Snowboarding of Kazakhstan Yelena Kruglykhina said. 

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