The Karaganda region leads in the number of registered athletes in the jumping events among boys at the upcoming Kazakhstan Athletics Championship for youth sports schools, featuring athletes born in 2008–2009.
The event is scheduled to take place from July 17 to 19 at the Olympic Training Centre Stadium, located about 20 kilometers from Almaty.
Among the jumping disciplines, the long jump has attracted the largest number of participants – 18 in total. Of these, 7 athletes represent the Karaganda region, 3 are from the Pavlodar region, 2 each from East Kazakhstan and Almaty, and 1 each from the Kyzylorda region, North Kazakhstan, Astana, and Shymkent.
One standout athlete is 16-year-old Seilzhan Arynov from the Pavlodar region, who has already cleared the 7-meter mark. In June, he set a new personal best of 7.05 meters and placed third at the 6th National Youth Games, where athletes up to age 23 were eligible to compete.
In the high jump, 8 athletes are registered: 4 from the Karaganda region, 2 from East Kazakhstan, and 1 each from Almaty and North Kazakhstan. Forecasting results here is difficult, but 15-year-old Maksat Bazarbayev from the Karaganda region currently holds the season’s best among the group with a height of 1.90 meters.
In the pole vault, 5 athletes will compete, representing Almaty, Karaganda (2), and East Kazakhstan (2). The favorite is 17-year-old Dmitry Shkerdin from Almaty, bronze medalist at the Asian U18 Championships. On July 4, he claimed silver at the Kazakhstan U20 Junior Championships, setting a personal best of 4.60 meters. However, at the senior national championships his result was more modest – 4.20 meters. His main rival is 17-year-old Nikita Chepushtanov from Karaganda, who improved his personal best to 4.20 meters in June.
The triple jump features 10 athletes from three regions – Karaganda (4), Pavlodar (2), North Kazakhstan – as well as from Astana and Almaty (2). Among them are the gold and bronze medalists from the U20 Junior Championships held from July 3 to 5. 17-year-old Georgiy Kozma from Karaganda took gold with a personal best and Candidate for Master of Sport result of 15.00 meters. Bronze went to his peer Igor Ovsekov from Almaty with 14.51 meters.
Now, the rivalry continues at the upcoming National Championship among youth sports schools — and other participants may well join the battle for the podium.
In the photo: Nikita Chepushtanov. Photo by Konstantin Knyazevich.
