Abstract
The five Central Asian countries emerged from Soviet collapse with arbitrarily drawn borders, weak national identities, and deeply complex ethnic and religious landscapes. Predominantly Muslim but heir to seventy years of Soviet secularization, each state contains substantial minority populations. Confronted with these internal fractures, the governments of these countries have since their independence in the 1990s turned to sport as a primary instrument for forging social cohesion, managing interethnic tensions, and legitimizing their authority. This article examines the ethnic lines, explains why certain sports and events are specifically organized in particular regions, and traces sport's evolution from a Soviet tool for acculturating Muslim populations into secular Soviet citizens to a post-independence vehicle for nation-building and international recognition. It examines how Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan are increasingly using sport, from cycling teams and football to combat sports and sports diplomacy, including the achievement of a UN-declared World Football Day, to project modernization, ease border rivalries, and submerge ethnic and religious differences beneath unifying national narratives.
Recommended Citation
Rahmanie, Khais
(2026)
"Central Asia's kaleidoscope of identities: Sport as the perfect instrument for nation-building,"
Journal of Global South Sport Studies: Vol. 1:
Iss.
2, Article 6.
Available at:
https://scholarworks.umb.edu/jgsss/vol1/iss2/6