First Vice President of the Uzbek Ice Hockey Federation Bahodir Gafurov answered the most important questions about the development of hockey in the country in an interview before the new season.
This year, the U18 championship of Asia and Oceania took place in Mongolia, where the junior national team of Uzbekistan achieved a triumphant victory. Next year the championship will take place in our country. In early August, Uzbekistan was visited by IIHF Vice President and Head of the Asian Committee Ayvaz Omarcanov. During the meeting with him, President of the Hockey Federation of Uzbekistan Bakhtiyor Fazilov confirmed willingness to host the second Asia and Oceania Championship in the U18 category in Uzbekistan. If you love hockey and want to bet on the winner of the current Roland Garros tournament, we recommend you visit mostbet-uz-mostbet.com .
“The upcoming tournament next year is planned to involve a larger number of teams than in the previous championship. Therefore, it is expected that the teams will be divided into two groups in the first stage, and the games will take place in Tashkent and Samarkand. The playoffs and the final match will be held in Tashkent. This is currently a preliminary plan. Work on its details is ongoing,” noted Bahodir Gafurov.
In recent years, all conditions have been created for the development of hockey in the country to be conducted at the highest level. In Tashkent, the largest “Humo Arena” and the arena in Samarkand can accommodate more than 10,000 hockey fans from around the world.
Five years ago, the Uzbekistan Hockey Federation was created, and in this short period of time, the development of hockey in the country has reached many heights. Gold at the Asia and Oceania U18 Championship and the Kazakhstan Cup, silver at the Pro Hokei Ligasy 22/23, and third place at the Friendship Cup.
“We started off well. One of the achievements, a milestone, I would say, is the first national player, raised directly in Uzbekistan, sixteen-year-old Jasur Rustamkhonov, who was called up by the coaching staff of the main team “Humo” and is preparing to compete in the Pro Hokei Ligasy championship. This is a serious achievement, a serious success. The first national talent was able to make a name for himself and start playing at a professional level,” said Bakhodir Gafurov.
One of the most important goals at the moment is the formation of the national ice hockey team of Uzbekistan and the integration of Uzbek ice hockey into the IIHF World Championships Program.
“There are qualification requirements for national teams to participate in International Ice Hockey Federation tournaments, which we currently do not fully meet. We are working hard on this and plan for the Uzbekistan national team to participate in the 2025 U18 World Championship,” he added.