MODELS OF STATE GOVERNANCE OF ELITE SPORT IN CENTRAL ASIA. PART 1: A COMPARATIVE INSTITUTIONAL AND STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF THE OLYMPIC PERFORMANCE OF UZBEKISTAN AND KAZAKHSTAN (1991–2026)
Keywords:
elite sport, Olympic Games, Central Asia, Olympic medal conversion rate, sports policy, doping crisis, state governance of sport, combat sports.Abstract
The article presents a comprehensive comparative analysis of the evolution of elite
sports systems in the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Republic of Kazakhstan during the
period of independence (1991–2026). Based on statistical data from the Summer and
Winter Olympic Games, adjusted to account for official decisions by the International
Olympic Committee (IOC), the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), and the Court of
Arbitration for Sport (CAS) concerning the retesting of doping samples, the study
calculates the Olympic Medal Conversion Rate (MCR) and the Golden Conversion Index.
The article examines institutional governance models: a resource-intensive, diversified
model involving extensive recruitment of foreign athletes (Kazakhstan) and a selective-
cluster, monocentric model based on national combat sports schools (Uzbekistan). It
demonstrates how a systemic crisis in sports pharmacology and funding imbalances
favoring team sports clubs contributed to a decline in Kazakhstan's Olympic performance,
while the gradual reform of the athlete development system and the targeted
concentration of resources enabled Uzbekistan to achieve a historic breakthrough into the
top 15 countries in the overall Olympic medal standings at Paris 2024.
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