Goat luck, America: Cowboy squad takes on Kok-boru, Central Asia’s fiercest sport
What began as an audacious adventure has developed into a decade-long national campaign. A band of American cowboys have crossed the world to compete for a 2026 World Nomad Games trophy in Kok-boru, a high-impact Central Asian sport played with a 30kg goat carcass or dummy.
The nine-man US team arrived in the Kyrgyz capital city Bishkek on 25 August before travelling to the resort town of Cholpon-Ata for training. The International Kok-boru Federation financed its trip, according to state news agency Kabar.
Team USA are scheduled to face Kyrgyzstan at the Kok-Boru Arena in Cholpon-Ata on 2 September after 4pm local time. Russia and Uzbekistan complete Group A, while Kazakhstan, Hungary, and Tajikistan make up Group B. Part of the 2026 World Nomad Games, the tournament runs until 6 September.
Captain Ladd Howell leads a team that presents itself as a collision of American rodeo, combat sports and military experience. Former US Marines are said to be among the athletes competing in Kok-boru and Er-enish, or horseback wrestling.
🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan, I owe you an apology, I was not familiar with your game. The Kyrgyz put on an impressive Olympics-level ceremony for the opening of the 2026 World Nomad Games. Beautiful display of traditional Central Asian culture with modern elements and 100s of horses. Central… https://t.co/kaetmsYRvP pic.twitter.com/Z8M2clYR5P
— Alexander Lacherbauer (@lacherbauer) September 1, 2026
A cowboy experiment that refused to die
On paper, America’s Kok-boru adventure looked like stunt casting.
At the 2016 World Nomad Games, cowboys and actors, including Billy Magnussen, travelled to Kyrgyzstan as the Nomad Cowboys. Wyoming horsemen Creed and Sky Garnick and future teammate Scott Zimmerman were also in the eight-man cast.
The team has visited Central Asia frequently and will compete in four World Nomad Games by 2024. Riders were scattered across the American West and had few chances to train together, making it more of a travelling band than a national programme.
Its worst near-miss was in Astana, Kazakhstan, in 2024. After Kazakhstan outclassed them, the Americans led Turkey 1-0 and forced the first Kok-boru shootout at the Games. Howell and his teammates bitterly missed their first win when the Turks won 2-1.
The USA kök börü team is training in Utah to compete at the 6th World Nomad Games. pic.twitter.com/wV2tpFPMpI
— iBalta (@sexenbeer) July 21, 2026
Read more: Central Asian leaders launch F1H2O Grand Prix on Lake Issyk-Kul.
A Kyrgyz coach behind US Kok-boru team
The American story also belongs partly to Mirlan Srazhdinov, the Kyrgyz player who became the team’s first kok-boru coach.
Srazhdinov trained the Americans at the 2016 and 2018 World Nomad Games and helped establish lasting ties between riders in the two countries. He had captained Kyrgyz club Börülü and represented Kyrgyzstan at the inaugural Games in 2014.
He died during a Kok-boru match in March 2025. Days before this year’s Games, Howell and other US riders visited Srazhdinov’s family, bringing commemorative gifts and paying tribute to the man who had taught them how to compete.
What is Kok-boru?
English speakers call kok boru «goat polo.» Other than horses and opposing goals, the comparison is vague. Each team sends four riders to throw a goat carcass or 30kg dummy into the other’s circular taikazan. In matches, three 15-minute periods are played.
The rules allow riders to push opponents with their torsos or chests and horses to nudge each other, but striking is prohibited. They even require muzzles for biting horses.
The result is like rugby played from the saddle: possession changes inside a dense mass of horses before one rider breaks free carrying a heavy weight that requires strength, balance, and trust in the animal beneath him.
