Казахстан / Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan were first represented in their own right at the Winter Olympic Games in Lillehammer and sent a team of 96 in 14 sports to the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta.

Yuri MELNICHENKO won bantamweight gold in Greco-Roman wrestling and Alex PARGYN won the modern pentathlon but it was in the boxing ring that Kazakhstan built their Olympic reputation.

Kazakhstan have never failed to win a gold in boxing since their Olympic debut. Vasili ZHIROV took light heavyweight gold in Atlanta and the late Bekzat SATTARKHANOV won at featherweight in 2000.

 Yermakhan IBRAIMOV won gold at Sydney 2000 in the men's light middleweight (71 kg). Bakhtiyar ARTAYEV won men's welterweight gold at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games and in Beijing Bakhyt Abdirakhmanovich SARSEKBAYEV kept this title in Kazakh hands.

Olga SHISHIGINA was the first Kazakh woman to win Olympic gold when she triumphed in the 100m hurdles at Sydney 2000.

In Beijing in 2008, Kazakhstan fielded a team of 130, equalling their largest team to date. Ilya ILIN took middle heavyweight gold in weightlifting.

Kazakh athletes competed as part of the Soviet Union from 1952 to 1988.

Weightlifter Anatoly KHRAPATY won middle heavyweight weightlifting gold at the Seoul 1988 Olympic Games in Soviet colours and claimed a silver for Kazakhstan at the Atlanta 1996 Games.