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AMİNAAzerbaijan National Sports Association
The Azerbaijani delegation with the flag on its return from the 4th World Nomad Games, 2022

About us

1990
active since
26
national and traditional sports
6
sports divisions
2022
pehlevanliq and zorkhana on the UNESCO list

From today's point of view national games are simply a sport. Yet with a history reaching back to the most ancient times, they are in fact a deep-rooted social phenomenon. The eternal truth of the struggle for survival will never let wrestling become mere sport and entertainment. Even now, in the age of space travel and the atom, wrestling, the foundation of our national sports, carries a great historical mission.

Whatever settlement, clan or village you visit, you can see for yourself how ways of thinking, upbringing, surroundings and social conduct rest on the pahlavan tradition of courage and valour. In our villages every parent measures a child's health, bravery and usefulness to society by the pahlavan spirit and skill.

Full name
Azerbaijan National Sports Association
Short name
AMİNA
Founded
1990, Khanlar Gurbanov
State registration
10 June 1992, No. 185
Accreditation
Ministry of Youth and Sports
Address
Luxen Plaza Business Centre, building 1, 10th floor, 34 Khatai Avenue, Nasimi district, Baku AZ1008

The Association's status

  1. Clubs

    Athletes train in clubs and sections.

  2. Federations

    The clubs of each sport unite in that sport's federation.

  3. Association

    The federations unite in AMİNA, an umbrella body accredited by the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

AMİNA brings the national sports federations together under one roof.

The Association's path

Full history
  1. 1990

    The Association was founded on the initiative of Khanlar Gurbanov, bringing together five national sports.

  2. 1992

    National wrestling was added to the physical education curriculum of general schools.

  3. 2007

    The Association joined the International Zurkhaneh Sports Federation.

  4. 2009

    Zorkhana and pahlavan wrestling began to be taught as a subject at the sports academy.

  5. 2022

    Pehlevanliq and zorkhana games were inscribed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list.

From 5 sports to 26

History of the foundation

The Association was founded in 1990 by the distinguished educator Khanlar Gurbanov and initially brought together five national sports. It takes an active part in setting up and running new sections in cities and districts, in strengthening the facilities and equipment for these sports, and in addressing other current issues.

In later years, sports of other peoples joined the national sports within the Association: aba, ssireum, Kazakh kuresi, belt wrestling, kabaddi, mas-wrestling and alysh.

In 1990

5 national sports

  • Wrestling
  • Chovgan
  • Nard (backgammon)
  • Active games
  • Zorkhana

Today

26 sports, 6 divisions

Founder and leadership

President
Professor Khanlar Gurbanov
Professor Khanlar Gurbanov (1950–2020).

Khanlar Gurbanov was born in Baku in 1950. He was a USSR Master of Sport, Honoured Coach and international referee, and for many years headed the wrestling department of the academy of physical education and sport. He founded the Association in 1990 and was elected its first president.

In 2008 he was elected vice-president of the European Zurkhaneh Sports Confederation and chairman of its technical committee. He was awarded the state Taraggi (Progress) Medal.

In the election of 12 November 2020, Kazim Gurbanov, vice-president since 2012, was unanimously elected President of the Association.

Presidents of the Association, on a timeline.

What the Association does

  1. Rules

    Prepares competition rules, programmes and classification standards.

  2. Competitions

    Organises and holds national and international competitions.

  3. National teams

    Approves the regulations on national teams together with the Ministry.

  4. International representation

    Represents the country's interests in the national sports.

At the heart of all this work is training people: the Association helps prepare coaches and specialists and awards scholarships to talented students.

Full list of functions
  • prepares and carries out a targeted, comprehensive programme for developing the national sports;
  • prepares and approves the rules and programmes of competitions in the national sports and the regulations for domestic competitions;
  • organises and holds national and international competitions in the national sports within the country;
  • takes part, together with other organisations, in international events and programmes;
  • together with the Ministry of Youth and Sports of the Republic of Azerbaijan, approves the regulations on national teams in the national sports that make up the Association;
  • draws up the sports classification standards and requirements for the national sports and submits them to the Ministry of Youth and Sports for approval;
  • represents the Association's interests internationally in national and folk sports;
  • cooperates with similar associations and federations in other countries;
  • takes part in training and selecting coaches and other specialists, and awards scholarships to talented university students in the national sports.

Zorkhana and pehlevanliq

The road to the international arena

Zorkhana and pahlavan wrestling are AMİNA's leading sports. Since 2007 the Association has been a member of the International Zurkhaneh Sports Federation, which unites 52 countries; Azerbaijan's national team takes part in all of the championships it holds.

In 1992 national wrestling was added to the physical education curriculum of general schools. Since the 2009/10 academic year zorkhana and pahlavan wrestling have been taught as a subject at the sports academy.

In 2022 Azerbaijan's nomination «Pehlevanliq culture: traditional zorkhana games, sports and wrestling» was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. UNESCO page

Zorkhana athletes in a traditional performance
A zorkhana performance.
Azerbaijan's zorkhana team with the flag
Zorkhana team, 2020.

On the international stage

Recent history
Participants of the 5th World Ethnosport Forum in Baku
5th World Ethnosport Forum, Baku, 5–6 March 2022. The Association's president took part in the forum.