Kok Boru is the national sport of Kyrgyzstan. Dead Goat Polo as some refer to it looks more like cavalier rugby with a headless goat as a ball. Two teams of five fearless men on horseback try to score a point by heaving the 20-kilo body into the tai kazan (goal) at either end. There is an exception called Alaman-Ulak where hundreds of riders fight for the goat.

Only stallions are used in this game because they are naturally anti-social and eager to fight off rivals. The players train their horses to muscle out other horses in the pack while they themselves wrestle each other to snatch the goat and gallop toward the goal, slamming into the rubber tires of the meter-high mound.

The origins of this legendary game lie somewhere between nomads hunting or defending their livestock against predatory wolves, to men and horses honing their fighting skills. Boys from the age of 4 - 5 learn to play on donkeys and instead of a goat, they throw around a much lighter pillow made of goatskin stuffed with hay. The new generation is happy to continue this rough-and-tumble game.