Kazakhstan hosted a continental-level rowing tournament for the first time, and it must be said, finished it triumphantly. However, on the final day of competition, an incident occurred at the same venue that subsequently developed into a fight. The conflict involved Timur Alikhanov, a coach at the special children's and youth sports school of Olympic reserve for water sports in the Turkestan region, and Daulet Sultanbekov, the state coach of the Republic of Kazakhstan for rowing sports. Alikhanov reported the incident on his personal Instagram page.
HOW THE TOURNAMENT WENT
The VI Asian Championships in canoe sprint and paracanoe for youth, juniors, and paracanoeists took place at the international rowing canal in Turkestan from 4 to 7 June 2026. The competition involved more than 350 athletes from 15 countries. A total of 67 sets of medals were awarded across three age categories.
The Kazakhstan national team competed with 58 athletes and secured top positions in the overall medal tally: Kazakh rowers won 41 medals, of which 20 were gold.
WHAT HAPPENED ON 7 JUNE
As reported by Timur Alikhanov, on the last day of the competition, 7 June, a physical altercation occurred between him and the state coach of the Republic of Kazakhstan for rowing sports, Daulet Sultanbekov. According to available information, the conflict took place in one of the service rooms on the grounds of the rowing canal. The incident was captured on CCTV cameras.
According to Alikhanov, at the time of the incident, Daulet Sultanbekov was intoxicated with alcohol.
"During the conflict, D.A. Sultanbekov struck me twice in the jaw area, causing bodily harm; he publicly insulted and humiliated me in front of other people, and also threatened me with dismissal," wrote Timur Alikhanov.
After the incident, Alikhanov filed a statement with the city police department. According to him, during the investigation, pressure was put on him to withdraw the statement. Specifically, it is claimed that the director of the special children's and youth sports school of Olympic reserve for water sports in the Turkestan region, Nurlan Aitbekov, personally came to the police department and urged him to drop the claims. However, Alikhanov refused to withdraw the statement. Subsequently, Daulet Sultanbekov also filed a counter-statement.
The editorial board of the FBKK has obtained the full video of the conflict between Timur Alikhanov and Daulet Sultanbekov. The recording does not allow for a definitive determination of the causes of the incident, but it suggests that the physical confrontation was mutual.
The FBKK has sent an official request to the regional department of physical culture and sports for a comment and to clarify all the circumstances of the incident.