Life & Culture - The Times Of Central Asia

Viewing results 37 - 42 of 1213

Transplantation

Uzbekistan Performs First Simultaneous Liver-Kidney Transplant

Uzbekistan has performed its first simultaneous liver and kidney transplant on a single patient. The operation was carried out at the National Medical Center, the Zamon news program reported. The procedure marks a further expansion of transplant medicine in Uzbekistan, where hospitals have introduced increasingly complex liver and kidney procedures in recent years. The patient, a woman from Pakhtachi district in Samarkand region, had suffered from liver disease for eight years. After contracting hepatitis C, she developed cirrhosis and later kidney failure. For the past four years, she had regularly undergone hemodialysis, a procedure that filters the blood and partially replaces kidney function. She had previously been advised to seek transplantation abroad, including in India, but the procedure did not go ahead because no suitable donor was found and her family could not cover the cost. Uzbek doctors concluded that transplanting only one of the organs would not be sufficient and decided to perform both procedures during a single operation. Simultaneous liver-kidney transplantation is used in patients with severe disease affecting both organs and is significantly more complex than a single-organ transplant. Doctors must not only perform two transplants during the same operation but also closely monitor the function of both organs afterward. Transplant medicine in Uzbekistan has advanced markedly in recent years. The country now performs both liver and kidney transplants, including procedures that until recently would often have required treatment abroad. In April 2026, doctors at the Republican Specialized Scientific and Practical Medical Center for Nephrology and Kidney Transplantation carried out a kidney transplant between a donor and recipient with incompatible blood groups. Before the operation, antibodies that could cause rejection were removed from the recipient’s blood. Pediatric transplantation is also developing. In December 2025, Uzbekistan performed its first liver transplant on a seven-month-old infant at the National Children’s Medical Center. The child’s mother was the donor. Access to post-transplant treatment has also expanded. Transplant recipients under medical follow-up in Uzbekistan are entitled to free immunosuppressive medicines needed to prevent rejection of the transplanted organ. Regulations also set out procedures for preparing living donors and recipients for surgery, as well as rehabilitation and subsequent medical monitoring. The latest operation adds another highly complex transplant option to those now available domestically. For patients with simultaneous severe liver and kidney disease, treatment abroad is no longer the only option. Hepatitis C, which led to cirrhosis in this patient, can remain without noticeable symptoms for years. Chronic infection can cause cirrhosis and liver cancer. According to the World Health Organization, modern direct-acting antiviral medicines can cure more than 95% of people with hepatitis C.

Archaeology

Possible 2,200-Year-Old Greek Military Camp Found in Uzbekistan

Archaeologists in southern Uzbekistan may have identified an exceptionally rare Hellenistic military camp at a site previously thought to be a small rural settlement. Dating back around 2,200 years, Iskandar Tepa may have functioned as a temporary base for Greco-Bactrian troops and could be the first such camp identified in Central Asia. Alexander the Great conquered Bactria and Sogdiana in the late fourth century B.C., bringing Greek armies deep into Central Asia. After his empire fragmented, Greek-ruled states continued to control parts of the region for centuries. Iskandar Tepa is located in the Sherabad District of Surkhandarya Region, within the ancient borderlands between Bactria and Sogdiana. A Czech-Uzbek archaeological expedition identified the site in 2017. At first, it was interpreted as a Greco-Bactrian settlement, with later research suggesting it may have been a watch post. The mound had no known local name when archaeologists discovered it, so they gave it the working name Iskandar Tepa. Iskandar is the local form of Alexander, making the name equivalent to “Alexander’s Hill.” The latest research suggests the site had a different function altogether. Geophysical surveys and excavations indicate that Iskandar Tepa was probably occupied only briefly, perhaps as a temporary military camp. The findings were published in June 2026 in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. The authors place the site in the Hellenistic period, while Archaeology Magazine dates the proposed military camp to the second century B.C. Iskandar Tepa’s layout supports the military interpretation. The site occupies a naturally protected hilltop. A perimeter ditch about 400 meters long enclosed an area of roughly 1.2 hectares and measured between 4 and 7 meters wide. However, researchers found little evidence of permanent buildings inside the enclosure. That combination is more consistent with a temporary fortified camp than with a permanent settlement. Coins associated with Hellenistic rulers help date the site. Considered alongside the site’s layout and other finds, the coins also support the interpretation that a military unit may once have occupied it. Supplying water to the people stationed there would have been a separate challenge. Archaeologists found large ceramic storage vessels, known as khums, buried in the ground. They also identified what appears to have been a canal, up to 1.1 meters wide, that carried water from several kilometers away. Researchers suggest that the vessels may have been used to store water for a temporary garrison. Geophysical surveys also revealed around 90 elongated pits. Many are interpreted as graves in a burial ground that developed after the main period of occupation at Iskandar Tepa or partly overlapped with it. Temporary military camps from the Hellenistic period are extremely difficult to identify archaeologically because, unlike cities and fortresses, they left relatively few permanent structures. Iskandar Tepa could therefore reveal another side of the Hellenistic presence in Central Asia by showing how relatively small military units stationed far from major urban centers secured water and monitored the surrounding territory. Southern Uzbekistan has also yielded evidence from a much earlier period. In 2025, researchers reported that...

Chess

Turkmenistan’s Allayar Shirliev Wins Abu Dhabi Chess Tournament

Allayar Shirliev was a conscripted soldier when he became Turkmenistan’s national chess champion in 2024 and has said he wants to break the world record for playing the most games simultaneously while blindfolded. The 22-year-old Turkmen player has now won a chess tournament in the United Arab Emirates, the Turkmenportal platform and other media reported. Shirliev won the Open A tournament at the 32nd International Chess Festival in Abu Dhabi, which was held from August 15 to August 24. The Open A category is for players with a rating of 2299 and below under the rules of FIDE, the international governing body of chess. The top ten players in the world all have ratings above 2750. Shirliev, whose chess title is candidate master, entered the Abu Dhabi tournament with a classical chess rating of 2184, and his victory is expected to raise his rating by about 40 points when FIDE publishes new figures. He won eight out of a possible nine points in the competition, drawing with two players who have the more advanced international master title, Bashir Eiti of Syria and Richilieu III Salcedo of the Philippines. In a separate category, Uzbek grandmaster Jakhongir Vakhidov won the masters tournament for players with a rating of 2,300 and above in Abu Dhabi. Next month, Uzbekistan will host the FIDE Chess Olympiad in Samarkand, fielding a team led by Javokhir Sindarov, winner of the FIDE Candidates Tournament in April. Born in Ashgabat, Shirliev is eager to push his limits. In April 2021, he played 25 games simultaneously while blindfolded and was planning another 30-game event, state media in Turkmenistan reported. Then, in July of that year, he played 40 games blindfolded, according to the InAshgabat news site. The world record for simultaneous games while blindfolded is held by Uzbek-born Timur Gareyev, according to Guinness World Records. He played 48 games at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas in 2016. He won 35 games, drew seven, and lost six. Hungarian grandmaster János Flesch played 52 opponents simultaneously while blindfolded in Budapest in 1960. But the performance wasn’t recognized as a world record.

Archaeology

Archaeologist Steven Gilbert on Medieval Christianity in Kazakhstan

For almost a decade, archaeologists excavating a medieval Silk Road city in southeastern Kazakhstan have been uncovering evidence of a little-known Christian community that lived there centuries before the Russian conquest. At Ilibalyk, in the Zhetysu region near Kazakhstan’s border with China, they have found a Christian cemetery, dozens of gravestones bearing crosses and epitaphs, a funerary chapel, and burials of women of high social status. In an interview with The Times of Central Asia, American archaeologist Steven Gilbert discusses the discoveries at Ilibalyk, what they reveal about Christianity in medieval Central Asia, and what archaeology can add to Kazakhstanis’ understanding of the region’s past. TCA: What inspired you to pursue archaeology, and how did your research journey bring you to Kazakhstan? Gilbert: I lived in Kazakhstan before I became an archaeologist. I moved to Kazakhstan in 1993, shortly after independence. My wife and I originally came as part of a humanitarian organization because Kazakhstan was facing many difficulties at the time. Our organization was involved in food aid projects in the Aral Sea region and various exchange programs. My interest in archaeology began after a schoolteacher discovered a very large Christian gravestone, one meter long, in Usharal, in the Panfilov district of the Zhetysu region, in 2014. I had previously conducted historical research into Christianity in Central Asia and knew that Christians had been present in the region since the fifth century, and possibly as early as the second century. The discovery of this remarkable artifact, now housed at the Center for the Rapprochement of Cultures in Almaty, allowed me to establish connections with archaeologists from Kazakhstan and the United States. Through them, I returned to the U.S. to study archaeology specifically so that I could work at this and other sites. TCA: What makes the ancient city of Ilibalyk historically unique within the Silk Road network? Gilbert: Ilibalyk was located on an ancient trade route just beyond the Dzungarian Gate in this region. It was a stop before Almaliq, the capital of the Chagataids in the late medieval period. This oasis on the edge of the desert was an important place for travelers both before and after the Mongol conquest. For our research, its uniqueness lies primarily in the fact that we now know that a large community of Turkic-speaking Christians lived here for almost two centuries, from the 12th to the 14th century.They lived in the city alongside followers of several religions: Muslims, Buddhists, Manichaeans, and those who followed traditional religious beliefs that today we call Tengrism. This is the first clearly Christian cemetery discovered in Kazakhstan dating from before the arrival of the Russian Empire. Christian communities and cemeteries had previously been found in Kyrgyzstan, but this is the first reliable evidence of such a community on the territory of modern-day Kazakhstan. TCA: Which of the artifacts and discoveries made by your team at Ilibalyk do you consider the most significant? Gilbert: We have discovered more than 50 gravestones, known as kairaks, bearing images of crosses. Six of...

Dastan Satpayev

Dastan Satpayev Burnley Debut Marks First Step in English Football

One of Central Asia’s most promising young footballers, Dastan Satpayev, made his competitive debut in English football on August 23. The 18-year-old Kazakhstan international came off the bench for Burnley in an away match against West Bromwich Albion in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Satpayev came on in the 58th minute with Burnley trailing 2-1, but was unable to prevent his side falling to a 3-1 defeat. Why Satpayev Ended Up in the Championship For a region whose footballers have rarely moved directly into leading Western European leagues, Satpayev’s career is being closely watched. In July, the forward joined Chelsea for preseason and scored in one of the club’s friendly matches. Chelsea formally completed his transfer on August 14, signing him to a contract running until 2033. He then joined Burnley on loan for the 2026/27 season. Loans are routinely used by major English clubs to give young players first-team experience elsewhere while they remain under contract with their parent club. Satpayev has said the move will give him a chance to adapt to English football. The Championship is far from a youth or reserve league. Sometimes dubbed "the toughest league in Europe", its marathon 46-game season features 24 clubs, many of whom, including Burnley, have appeared in the Premier League. “I Just Need to Keep Working Hard” Ahead of his debut, Burnley’s official website published Satpayev’s first interview since joining the Lancashire club. “I think this loan is a good step for me. I can adapt here and see what it is like to play in England. Playing in the Championship will help me get used to English football,” the forward said. Satpayev also noted that the intensity of the English schedule, with its 46 league games, plus domestic cup fixtures, will help his development. “I just need to keep working hard, keep moving forward and keep working. It’s also good that there are so many games in the Championship and Premier League: for a footballer, it’s great when you have a match every three or four days. It helps you stay sharp all the time,” he said. His First Half-Hour On August 23, head coach Nicky Hayen selected him for the away match against West Bromwich Albion. The Kazakh forward came on with Burnley trailing 2-1, replacing Armando Broja in the 58th minute. The visitors were unable to turn the game around. West Brom scored a third goal from the penalty spot and won 3-1. After the match, Hayen did not single out the Kazakh player’s debut for assessment. Instead, the head coach expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of the team as a whole, particularly after halftime. “The defeat was fully deserved. They had much more energy, and you could see that in the duels and the second balls. We played too slowly and were a long way from the level of last week,” Hayen said. Early reactions to Satpayev were broadly positive. British football blogger Josh Pearson, who regularly covers the Championship, suggested after...

World Nomad Games

Kok Boru and the Art of Being Noticed: The World Nomad Games as Kyrgyzstan’s Calling Card

A stampede throws up a great wall of dust as a scrum of white, sweating stallions tears past. A roar rises from the stands. With horsemen in hot pursuit, a rider bursts from the pack, swinging a 30-kilo plastic simulation of a goat carcass. As they charge toward the goal, the horses bare their teeth. This is the spectacle awaiting travelers from far and wide at this year’s World Nomad Games. For Kyrgyzstan, the Games are a source of pride. Born beside Lake Issyk-Kul, twelve years on, the sixth edition will see 100,000 visitors descend on a town of 13,000. The timing in 2026 makes the aspiration hard to ignore. The opening ceremony falls on Kyrgyzstan’s Independence Day, while leaders are also gathering in Bishkek for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit. Presidential spokesman Askat Alagozov has said 21 heads of state are expected. The Games will open before many of them in the new 51,000-seat Bishkek Arena. [caption id="attachment_54493" align="aligncenter" width="1774"] Image: International Secretariat of the World Nomad Games[/caption] Kyrgyzstan has spent more than a decade building toward this goal. The initiative was approved at the Turkic Council summit in Bishkek in 2012 before the first Games were staged in Cholpon Ata in 2014. Then, there were 583 athletes from 19 countries. Kyrgyzstan hosted again in 2016 and 2018, before the event moved to Turkey in 2022 and Kazakhstan in 2024. That decision could have diluted Kyrgyzstan’s ownership. Instead, each foreign edition strengthened the identity of the event Kyrgyzstan had started. In December 2025, founder Askhat Akibaev transferred the intellectual property rights to the Kyrgyz state. Cabinet Chairman Adylbek Kasymaliev called the Games “the flagship of our state’s cultural diplomacy.” Akibaev explained the achievement succinctly after the first three editions. “We proved to ourselves and the world that a small country can do something global,” he told RFE/RL. Kyrgyzstan cannot match major powers through stadium budgets or international sports leagues, but the Games have given it access to an audience money alone could not buy. The cultural case has also gained international recognition. In 2021, UNESCO selected “Nomad games, rediscovering heritage, celebrating diversity” for its Register of Good Safeguarding Practices. The program was praised for reviving traditional games and passing knowledge to younger generations, while bonding contestants across borders. [caption id="attachment_54490" align="aligncenter" width="1774"] Image: International Secretariat of the World Nomad Games[/caption] The numbers tell their own story. Astana brought together 2,500 athletes from 89 countries in 2024. This year, around 3,000 athletes are registered from 113 countries for 43 sports. Local organizers say the field now reaches far beyond states with a direct nomadic heritage, with newcomers expected from New Zealand and several African countries. Team GB offers one of the clearest examples. Britain competed in Astana in 2024, and is returning with a larger contingent. The team has expanded beyond tug-of-war and intellectual games into horseback archery and wrestling. The sole British competitor in the Alysh wrestling will be The Times of Central Asia contributor, Jonathan Campion. The British...