More and more people are taking up running not only for the results, but also for the emotions, new connections, and travel opportunities it offers. Today, marathons are becoming part of the cultural and tourism experience: participants discover new cities, connect with local communities, and set athletic goals for themselves.
Against the backdrop of growing interest in running tourism in Central Asia, the region is also developing its own international initiatives. One of them is the Turkic Alliance of Long Runs — TAN, created on January 30, 2025, by race organizers from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. It includes Central Asia’s largest race, the Almaty Marathon, as well as the Turkistan Marathon — a race held in the spiritual capital of the Turkic world.
According to the organizers, TAN brings together not only races but also the cultural experiences of the countries in the region. Its benchmark is international race series such as Abbott World Marathon Majors and SuperHalfs, where registration closes within just a few hours and runners dream of completing the races for years.
Galimzhan Yessenov, chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Courage to Be First Corporate Foundation, organizer of the Almaty Marathon and Turkistan Marathon:
"We see races in Central Asia gradually becoming part of international running tourism. People come here for new experiences, the atmosphere of the cities, and the feeling of a major sporting journey. TAN helps bring these races together into a single space and increase the region’s appeal to international participants. According to our forecasts, the share of international participants in the Almaty Marathon could increase from 9 to 19 percent, which would already make a significant contribution to the city’s economy and the region’s tourism appeal. Other marathons in the series have also already felt the impact of participating in TAN in its first year".
Source link: https://www.weproject.media/en/articles/detail/how-runners-from-china-france-and-other-countries-discover-kazakhstan-through-marathons/
