Going for the Goal

Kokpar is an ancient Kazakh sport played on horseback with a goat carcass as the ball. This was the national playoff between the Astana and Almaty teams, capturing the moment when the Astana rider (in blue) broke free of the Almaty team (in maroon) and sprinted toward the goal. Hopefully this shot catches some of the chaos of the sport, which requires speed, stealth horsemanship, and a strong whipping arm.