Buzkashi
Officially Buzkashi (بزکشی)
Central Asia's national horseback sport — riders battle to pick up a goat (or calf) carcass and carry it into a scoring circle.
What is Buzkashi?
Buzkashi is the national sport of Afghanistan and, in local variants (Kokpar, Kok-boru, Ulak-tartysh), of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. Dozens of chapandaz (accomplished horsemen) fight from the saddle for possession of a headless calf or goat carcass, aiming to carry it to a designated scoring circle. It is one of the world's oldest surviving equestrian sports; the modern formalised version is called Buzkashi-e Tudabarai in Afghanistan, and Kok-boru (recognised by the World Nomad Games) in the Kyrgyz Republic. UNESCO inscribed Kok-boru on its Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2017.
Quick facts
Category
Equestrian Sports
Type
Team sport
Players
Traditional Afghan Buzkashi-e Tudabarai has no fixed team size — dozens compete. Modern Kok-boru: 4 riders per side + 2 substitutes.
Duration
~45 min
Where played
outdoor
Field / court
meydan / horse-field
Country of origin
🇦🇫 Afghanistan
Estimated origin
c. 10th century
Olympic
No
Popularity
regional
How it works
Objective
Pick up the carcass from a starting circle and deposit it in the opposing team's scoring well (Kok-boru) or return it to your own designated scoring circle (Tudabarai).
Match structure
Riders start in a scrum around the carcass. Whoever pulls it clear must ride — dragging or draped over the saddle — toward the scoring point while opposing riders try to whip, block or wrench it away. The rally ends when a goal is scored or the carcass leaves play.
Rules
Basic rules
The pickup
The rider must lift the ~30–60 kg carcass from the ground while mounted — one of the sport's defining feats.
Scoring
In Kok-boru, throw the carcass into the tai kazan (a raised well) at the opponent's end. In Tudabarai, ride the carcass free and drop it in your side's designated circle.
Contact
Riders may whip each other's hands (not faces or horses), push, block and pull the carcass with their hands. Weapons and unnecessary cruelty to horses are strictly forbidden.
Advanced rules
Master rider (chapandaz)
Only elite riders — chapandazi — can compete at professional level. Training takes decades.
Time-outs
In modern Kok-boru, if the carcass is stuck in a scrum for over 90 seconds the referee restarts play.
Scoring
1 point per successful deposit of the carcass in the scoring zone.
Win condition · Highest score after the period limit wins; draws are common in traditional versions.
Playing area
Called
meydan / horse-field
Dimensions
Traditional: an open field, kilometres across. Modern Kok-boru: 200 m × 70 m with a scoring 'tai kazan' well at each end.
In the traditional game the meydan is an open plain; in the formalised Kok-boru version a bounded pitch with clay-lined wells (tai kazan) at each end acts as goals.
A buzkashi playing field
Open steppe — no fixed dimensions. Riders start in the middle, pick up the boz (goat carcass), gallop around the far flag, and drop it inside their own hallal (scoring circle) for a point.
Equipment
Boz / Ulak
The traditional 'ball' is a headless goat or calf carcass, soaked in cold water beforehand for weight and durability. Modern events increasingly use synthetic replicas.
Horse
Highly trained Central Asian breeds — often specialised working horses that spend years mastering the game.
Chapan & telpak
Thick padded riding coat and lambskin hat — protection against whips and other riders.
Positions & roles
Chapandaz
Master rider — the only riders traditionally allowed at senior level.
Blocker
In modern Kok-boru, defensive riders whose main role is to obstruct opposition attacks.
Officiating
Traditional Buzkashi is largely self-policed by community elders and the reputation of the chapandazi. Modern Kok-boru has formal on-horseback referees.
- Referees (modern Kok-boru: 3 on horseback)
- Elders / village judges (traditional Buzkashi)
Penalties & fouls
Fouls
Whipping face / horse
Immediate penalty and possible expulsion.
Grabbing another rider's reins
Fouled and possession-restart in modern formalised versions.
Terminology
- Chapandaz
- Master horseman — the elite rider class in Buzkashi.
- Boz
- The goat / calf carcass used as the 'ball'.
- Tai kazan
- The raised earthen well used as a goal in modern Kok-boru.
- Meydan
- The playing field — traditionally an open plain.
- Tudabarai
- Traditional Afghan variant — bring the carcass free from the scrum and drop it in your circle.
- Qarajai
- Traditional variant — carry the carcass on a circuit and deposit it in a specific point.
Major competitions
World Nomad Games
biennial · Central Asia · since 2014
Afghan National Buzkashi Championships
annual · Afghanistan
Where it is played
Governing bodies
World Ethnosport ConfederationWEC
Founded 2015
Kyrgyz Kok-Boru FederationKKBF
Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Famous names & records
Famous athletes
- Aziz Ahmad (Afghanistan)
- Kubatbek Iskakov (Kyrgyzstan)
Learn this sport
beginner
- 1What is buzkashi?
A horseback sport where dozens of riders battle for a headless goat carcass — Central Asia's national game.
- 2The two main styles
Traditional Buzkashi (Afghanistan) and Kok-boru (Kyrgyzstan) — same core action, different rules.
- 3The pickup
Lifting a 30–60 kg carcass from the saddle while riding is the sport's defining skill.
- 4Scoring
Kok-boru: throw it into the opponent's well. Tudabarai: bring it free and drop it in your circle.
Frequently asked
Is a real animal used?+
Traditionally yes — a headless goat or calf carcass. Modern formalised leagues (Kok-boru at the World Nomad Games) sometimes use synthetic replicas.
How is it scored?+
In Kok-boru the carcass is dropped into a raised earthen well at the opponent's end; in traditional Buzkashi (Tudabarai) it must be freed from the scrum and dropped in a designated circle.
Is buzkashi violent?+
It is extremely physical — riders whip each other's hands and horses collide at speed — but weapons, face-whipping and cruelty to horses are prohibited.
Sources & provenance
- UNESCO — Kok-boru— UNESCO
- World Nomad Games— World Ethnosport Confederation