More than 3,000 traditional athletes from over 102 countries are participating in the four-day event organized by the World Ethnosport Confederation and inaugurated by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Contestants compete in the Kökbörü competition at the 4th World Nomad Games in Iznik, Türkiye, Sept. 29, 2022.
Held under the slogan "We are one: From tradition to future," the games will host over 40 competitions across three main categories – horse riding, wrestling and archery.
A woman dressed in traditional attire rides a horse while holding a bow at the 4th World Nomad Games in Iznik, Türkiye, Sept. 29, 2022.
Attracting an international audience, the event features several competitions unique to Turkic geography and aims to preserve the cultural and historical heritage of people from all over the world.
Dhanisa Restya, who traveled from Indonesia to watch the competition, is pictured in her traditional dress at the 4th World Nomad Games in Iznik, Türkiye, Sept. 29, 2022.
In kökbörü, a sport dating back 5,000 years, riders swoop in and lower themselves down to the "ulak," or goat's hide, which has replaced the traditional animal carcass their ancestors used.
A contestant in action during a kökbörü match at the 4th World Nomad Games in Iznik, Türkiye, Sept. 29, 2022.
"The mission of the World Nomad Games covers the revival, development, and preservation of the ethnoculture, diversity, and originality of the people of the world in order to foster a more tolerant and open relationship between people," the World Nomad Games said on their official website.
A man stands on top of a running horse on the first day of the 4th World Nomad Games in Iznik, Türkiye, Sept. 29, 2022.
