Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The Athletics Federation, together with the Ministry of Sports Development of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the National Olympic Committee, Uzbekneftegaz JSC and the Tashkent city administration, organized the Save Aral - 2022 international charity race, the third this season.

More than 2,000 participants today came out to support a charity run in Tashkent, including professional athletes, students, schoolchildren, pensioners, athletics enthusiasts and civil activists, urging their participation to pay attention to a number of socially important and topical issues related to public health and environmental protection. environment.

The starting point of the "Save Aral - 2022" race was the ice palace "Humo Arena", located at the intersection of Afrosiab and Beshagach streets.

Shokhrukh Davlatov, an athlete from Surkhandarya, became the winner of today's race. He is a regular participant in international and national sports marathons, winner of the SCO half marathon in Dushanbe (Tajikistan), the Save Aral-2021 run in Tashkent and the Samarkand Half Marathon.

“Each marathon is given at the cost of a lot of work and constant training. It doesn’t matter how high the status of the event is, you need to carefully prepare for each race, - Shokhrukh shared his thoughts after the finish, - And I work a lot on myself. The most important thing in athletics is to be patient and hardworking. This is the only way to achieve results."

Professional athletes note that holding such events stimulates them to develop their sports potential, increases their competitiveness and stress resistance. Participants of past races are eagerly joining this year's races. The winner of the "Save Aral - 2021" race in Nuravshan Evgeny Fadeev also participated in today's event and took 3rd place.

“At the moment, I am preparing for the upcoming SCO half marathon, a distance of 21 km. There you need to keep a completely different pace of running. Today I turned out to be third, but in general I am very pleased with the result - I ran 3 km in 8.38 minutes, - Evgeny said, - There were very strong rivals, we constantly meet with them at long and short distances.

International charity races "Save Aral" have been held in the cities of Uzbekistan since 2019. The sports marathon is aimed at supporting activities to mitigate the consequences of the drying up of the Aral Sea and restore the Aral Sea region, promote a healthy lifestyle among the population and integrate people with disabilities into an active sports community.

Organizers of “Save Aral” award separate nominations to the youngest and oldest participants of the race. Long-term participants of the Tashkent running clubs "Centaur" and "Icarus" - Lyubov Musina (78 years old) and Liana Nizhnik (74 years old) joined today's race. Both participants have been running amateurs for over 20 years.

 “I never went in for professional sports and came to the jogging club only after fifty years,” said Lyubov, - And quite unexpectedly for herself in the first competition she took 3rd place. I urge everyone to go in for sports and not be afraid of age. For me, sport means positive emotions, strength and health, communication, well-being and a second youth.”

Over 3 years of organizing sports events, more than 100 thousand citizens have joined the Save Aral initiative, 35 races have been held throughout the country. This year, competitions have already taken place in Gulistan and Jizzakh. In total, from February to November 2022, the Athletics Federation plans to organize and support 50 races in all regions of the country and in the Republic of Karakalpakstan. The farthest point will be the famous port city of Muynak.

Caring for the environment is an important part of the Save Aral social project. As part of the races, the organizers repeatedly carried out mass planting of trees, environmental campaigns with the participation of athletes, volunteers and amateur runners.

“Uzbekistan has the most developed sports infrastructure in Central Asia. We have about 40 stadiums suitable for athletics, - notes Andrey Abduvaliev, Deputy Chairman of the Athletics Federation, - With such opportunities, we should become the most athletic nation in the region. You can start small, at least from the same distance of 3 km as part of the Save Aral charity run. It is within the power of everyone.”

Sports charity run "Save Aral" was included in the presidential program aimed at improving the health of the population. Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan No. UP-5924 dated January 24, 2020

“On measures to further improve and popularize physical culture and sports in the Republic of Uzbekistan” outlines the targets of a large-scale social project aimed at popularizing physical culture and sports among the population, at the selective selection of potential athletes to attract to professional sports and attract widely public attention to the aggravating situation around the Aral Sea and the restoration of the Aral Sea region.

Winners of the "Save Aral - 2022" race:

1. Shohruh Davlatov - 8:20 min.

2. Otabek Toshkuvvatov - 8:33 min.

3. Evgeny Fadeev - 8:38 min.

1. Alina Khakimova - 10:27 min.

2. Latofat Abdumalikova - 10:40 min.

3. Anastasia Silchenkova - 10:51 min