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Ashgabat, the capital city of Turkmenistan, is all set to host the 5th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games. For Turkmenistan, this historic event, which is slated to begin on 17 September, will represent an extraordinary milestone. Never before has the country hosted a global sporting event of this scale. It will thus act as a springboard for the nation to successfully host major sporting competitions in the future.
The city of Ashgabat has made all the right moves with their hard work finally coming to fruition – the capital city now holds the distinction of successfully constructing the largest sporting complex, the Ashgabat Olympic Complex, consisting of 30 different facilities, in the Central Asian region.
Also read: Ashgabat 2017: All you need to know about the 5th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games
The state-of-the-art complex, encompassing 54 hectares, has been built around the Olympic Stadium, in the centre of Ashgabat. This ensures ease of navigation for athletes, officials, media and fans.
The newly constructed Ashgabat Olympic Stadium will be the epicentre of the complex and will host the opening ceremony on 17 September. It pays tribute to the widely respected symbol of Turkmenistan – the Akhal-teke horse. The Main Indoor Arena is where all the combat action will take place - Wrestling, Belt Wrestling and Traditional Wrestling. It is also the largest venue within the Olympic Complex, after the Stadium, and can house 15,000 spectators.
The Olympic Complex has a venue specifically dedicated to Taekwondo and Dance Sports, located in the southern end of the expansive location. One of the major attractions at the Games will be Martial Arts: a specially constructed arena will play host to Sambo, Ju Jitsu and Kurash competitions in the 5,000-seater arena.
Without a world class track cycling arena, the Olympic Complex wouldn’t be complete and the 6,000 seater Velodrome provides exactly that. Those with an affinity for speed and perseverance can also watch the athletics events at the breathtaking Indoor Athletics Arena. In addition to that, the game of Futsal will be played at the Multifunctional Sport Venue, a structure just 500m outside of the Ashgabat Olympic Complex which can accommodate over 10,000 spectators.
Also read: Ashgabat 2017 announces Turkmenistan Airlines and Petronas as official partners
Chief among the numerous world-class facilities is the Athletes Village, which is set to welcome 6,000 athletes and team officials, more than 700 dignitaries, and over 1,000 technical officials. 20 buildings of 12 floors each with close to 3,000 apartments have been erected, keeping in mind the most specific requirements of the athletes.
To ensure the athletes are ready for action when duty calls, they can dine at the athlete dining hall. This facility is operated throughout the Games, and is specially designed and planned for meeting the nutritional needs of all the athletes in the village.
To top it off, two spectacular five-star hotels have been constructed for members of the press, Olympic Council of Asia dignitaries and broadcasters. The President of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, paid a visit to the elaborate games complex, including the Village, the 45,000-seater Olympic Stadium and the luxurious VIP lounges, and validated the extensive efforts of the stakeholders involved.
The athletes residing in the village will be able to access a host of interesting and entertaining activities to help them de-stress from the rigours of competition. All of these world-class provisions can be accessed from inside the village itself, creating a high-performance community of like-minded people.
There's plenty to keep everyone entertained during downtime. The village also boasts of an in-built theatre, allowing athletes to watch movies after a long day of competing and training. If they’re in the mood to let their creative juices flow, there’s a music studio too, where they can listen to music on hi-definition speakers or even try their hand at composing some melodies.
Most importantly, in case of a medical emergency, the Olympic Village has a state-of-the-art medical complex, including a rehabilitation centre with a research laboratory. Medical specialists will be available at any point of time to attend to the needs of the athletes.
With multiple venues and numerous facilities on offer across the widespread Olympic Village, athletes may be required to conserve their energy while visiting them.
A new monorail system built in the complex has that covered too. The monorail, which will stop at regular intervals, will connect and stop near multiple venues, making eight calls in just 17 minutes, within the Ashgabat Olympic Complex.
The Ashgabat Olympic Complex is the jewel in the crown of the 5th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games. The efforts of the organisers have paid dividends in the form of a world-class sporting complex and the marble city of Ashgabat is set to take the world by storm come September.
