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| Turkmenistan's strongman president turns champion jockey | Turkmenistan's strongman president turns champion jockey |
| (12 days later) | |
| Turkmenistan's president, Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, has taken his cult of personality to new heights with headlines in the state-run media trumpeting his victory in a £7m horse race. | Turkmenistan's president, Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, has taken his cult of personality to new heights with headlines in the state-run media trumpeting his victory in a £7m horse race. |
| A professional dentist also known for his passion for glitzy racing cars, the president has run the post-Soviet republic with an iron fist since 2006 when his flamboyant autocratic predecessor Saparmurat Niyazov died of a heart attack. | A professional dentist also known for his passion for glitzy racing cars, the president has run the post-Soviet republic with an iron fist since 2006 when his flamboyant autocratic predecessor Saparmurat Niyazov died of a heart attack. |
| Widely referred to as "Arkadag" (Patron) at home, he wields almost absolute power in a central Asian desert country of 5.5 million people that holds the world's fourth-largest reserves of natural gas. | Widely referred to as "Arkadag" (Patron) at home, he wields almost absolute power in a central Asian desert country of 5.5 million people that holds the world's fourth-largest reserves of natural gas. |
| On Monday, state media showed Berdymukhamedov wearing a traditional white Turkmen "telpek" sheepskin hat and crimson kaftan while riding Berkarar (or Mighty), a straw-coloured local breed of horse known as Akhal Teke. | On Monday, state media showed Berdymukhamedov wearing a traditional white Turkmen "telpek" sheepskin hat and crimson kaftan while riding Berkarar (or Mighty), a straw-coloured local breed of horse known as Akhal Teke. |
| The 1,000-metre race was held on Sunday when Turkmenistan celebrated the Day of the Turmen Racehorse – a holiday established by Niyazov to honour the local equine breed. | The 1,000-metre race was held on Sunday when Turkmenistan celebrated the Day of the Turmen Racehorse – a holiday established by Niyazov to honour the local equine breed. |
| "The spectators' attention was riveted on the golden arrow – Berkarar, [ridden] by the leader of the nation. All was decided by fractions of a second, and Berkarar was the first to cross the finish line," the newspaper Neitralny Turkmenistan reported. | "The spectators' attention was riveted on the golden arrow – Berkarar, [ridden] by the leader of the nation. All was decided by fractions of a second, and Berkarar was the first to cross the finish line," the newspaper Neitralny Turkmenistan reported. |
| "President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov has yet again demonstrated not only his high class as a horse rider, but also his strong will, firmness and courage." | "President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov has yet again demonstrated not only his high class as a horse rider, but also his strong will, firmness and courage." |
| The 55-year-old will donate his winnings to a state company breeding the Akhal Teke horses, local media said. | The 55-year-old will donate his winnings to a state company breeding the Akhal Teke horses, local media said. |
| Turkmenistan, the only central Asian country that does not consume horsemeat, has developed a virtual cult of its "divine horses". Akhal Teke horses have been given as a gift to the leaders of Iran, France, Russia, Kazakhstan and other nations. | Turkmenistan, the only central Asian country that does not consume horsemeat, has developed a virtual cult of its "divine horses". Akhal Teke horses have been given as a gift to the leaders of Iran, France, Russia, Kazakhstan and other nations. |
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