Islamabad (GNP): Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana, opened the Games of the Future 2026 on Wednesday, with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev welcoming athletes, dignitaries and heads of state to the ceremony marking the start of the multisport tournament that blends traditional athletics with competitive gaming and technology.
Addressing the gathering, Tokayev described the occasion as a historic milestone for strengthening ties between nations and noted that it marks the first time Kazakhstan has hosted the event, calling it a significant honor for the country.
Tokayev thanked Russian President Vladimir Putin for sending a video message to competitors and welcomed the Central Asian leaders who attended in person, including Tajikistan’s Emomali Rahmon, Uzbekistan’s Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Kyrgyzstan’s Sadyr Zhaparov, alongside the heads of the various national delegations taking part.
He traced the tournament’s rapid rise since its founding by Russia, crediting Putin with the success of the concept, and recalled how the Games began in Kazan before moving to Abu Dhabi and now arriving in Kazakhstan, drawing roughly 800 athletes from more than 30 countries to Astana. He added that he expects the Astana edition to give fresh momentum to the phygital movement worldwide, a hybrid format that fuses classical sport with the cyber industry.
The Games officially opened on Wednesday and will run in Astana through August 9, bringing traditional sporting disciplines and esports-style competitions together under one roof. The phygital format, which pairs a physical sport component with a digital or esports counterpart within the same discipline, has quickly expanded as a showcase event since its 2024 debut in Kazan, growing to includeAbu Dhabi before this year’s stop in Kazakhstan.
Astana’s hosting role reflects both the format’s international growth and Kazakhstan’s broader push to position itself as a hub for major sporting and technology events, with the eleven-day competition expected to feature a mix of team and individual events contested across both physical and digital formats.
That same push to elevate Kazakhstan’s international standing in sport and tourism was reflected on the sidelines of the tournament, where the Secretary General of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS), Ambassador Kubanychbek Omuraliev, met with Kazakhstan’s Minister of Tourism and Sport, Yerbol Myrzabossynov, to discuss deepening cooperation between the two sides.
The meeting continued an ongoing dialogue between the OTS Secretariat and Kazakh officials aimed at expanding joint initiatives across the bloc, which brings together five member states, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Türkiye and Uzbekistan, along with observer states Hungary and Turkmenistan.
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The Organization of Turkic States, founded under the 2009 Nakhchivan Agreement, works to foster cooperation among Turkic states across political, economic, cultural and humanitarian fields, with tourism and sport serving as recurring pillars in that effort.
Omuraliev and Myrzabossynov have met on the sidelines of several regional gatherings in recent years, dating back to their first formal meeting in September 2024 in Astana, where they discussed cooperation ahead of the World Nomad Games. Since becoming Kazakhstan’s tourism and sports minister that same month, Myrzabossynov has represented the country at similar forums, including the World Ethnosport Forum in Antalya, Türkiye, and the OTS Ministers of Youth and Sports meeting held in Tashkent last October.
The latest talks arrive at a busy moment for Kazakhstan’s sports and tourism calendar, with the country also set to host Germany’s DRV Destination Forum in Astana in August and having eased travel requirements for foreign visitors to the Baikonur Cosmodrome this year. Kazakhstan is expected to build on this momentum with further high-level OTS engagements later in the year, including preparations for an informal summit of the organization in Turkistan, as Astana continues hosting the Games of the Future through August 9.
Managing Editor at Global News Pakistan (GNP), with a Bachelor's degree in International Relations from Riphah International University, graduated with a Gold Medal. Reach out at sabahtareengnp@gmail.com
