With the attainment of independence, new approaches to the organization of the sports and physical movement began to be formed in Turkmenistan and the foundations for international cooperation in the field of sports began to form. The starting point for its active phase began from 2007, when Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov was elected to the post of the President of Turkmenistan to reform all spheres of state structure and society, including sports. Since that time the development of physical culture and sports in the country, the achievement of a healthy lifestyle due to a harmonious combination of the spiritual and physical potential of a man, and the expansion of international sports cooperation have become one of the priorities of state policy.

In the course of implementing this policy, multifunctional stadiums, sports and recreation complexes, race courses, sports schools and other sports facilities have been built in all velayats (regions) of the country. The method of training sportsmen and specialists, the practice of holding sports competitions began to improve in the country; Turkmen sportsmen began to actively participate in foreign competitions. To highlight the achievements in the field of physical culture and sports, promote healthy lifestyles, which is conducted under the slogan "Turkmenistan is a country of spirituality and health," since January 1, 2012 the "Turkmenistan-Sport" TV channel began broadcasting.

In special climatic conditions of Turkmenistan, opportunities for winter sports have been created. A sports complex for winter sports has been built in Ashgabat, as well as a multifunctional sports complex with an ice arena of professional dimensions was built in the Avaza National Tourist Zone. It's not the first year that the national hockey championship has been held in the country, such sports as figure skating and short track have been developed.

The most popular is hockey with a puck, which championships are held in our country for more than a year. Over the past few years, the national hockey team of Turkmenistan has reached the international level.

Over the years of the reforms, the quality of sportsmanship has significantly increased.

The development of physical culture and sports is supported by the laws "On Physical Culture and Sport", "On Professional Sports", "On Horse Breeding and Equestrian Sports", "On State Youth Policy”, “On Volunteering", "On Combating Doping in Sport".

To strengthen international relations in the field of sports, as well as full integration into the system of the world Olympic movement, Turkmenistan ratified the UNESCO International Convention against Doping in Sport, joined the Nairobi Treaty on the Protection of the Olympic Symbol, the country established the National Anti-Doping Agency.

In the concept of international sports cooperation, Turkmenistan imposes a high humanistic meaning and directly relates it to the UN's Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 (SDGs). On September 15, 2017 on the initiative of Turkmenistan at the 36th session of the UN Council on Human Rights the Declaration "On Encouraging the Valuable Contribution of the Olympic Teams of Refugees to the Strengthening of Peace and Human Rights" was adopted. On the initiative of our country, the UN General Assembly proclaimed June 3 as the World Bicycle Day.

Cooperation in the field of sports is regulated on a bilateral legal basis with more than 60 states. In addition, the issues of cooperation in the field of sports find a worthy place in the declarations and communiqués of the heads of states adopted at the high level visits, as well as in the documents of the intergovernmental commissions on the development of bilateral cooperation with foreign countries.

One of the most important directions in the field of international sports cooperation, including in the field of sports diplomacy, has been the consistent work to spread the Turkmen national wrestling "Goresh" in the world. Since 2015, the World Goresh Wrestling Federation has been operating with headquarters in Ashgabat, and federations for this sport have been established in more than twenty countries. In 2017, the European, African and South American continental federations of the Turkmen national wrestling "Goresh" were created, as well as European and African championships in this sport were held. The work to further advance the Turkmen wrestling in the world continues.

The culmination of the decade-long development of the sports movement and the formation of Turkmenistan's full-fledged international sports cooperation was the most ambitious and representative in its series V Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games which took place on September 17-27, 2017 in Ashgabat under the motto: "Health. Inspiration. Friendship". A distinctive feature of the Games "Ashgabat 2017" was the fact that along with 45 Asian countries in the competition for the first time took part athletes from 19 countries of Oceania (almost a third of the world), as well as a sports team of refugees.

Competitions were held in a specially built for the Games in Ashgabat Olympic town, which has no analogues in the Central Asian region and where are about 40 different objects, two of which were included in the Guinness Book of Records - this is the world's largest artistic monumental image of the horse, towering above the Olympic Stadium and the Water Sports Center with the world's largest indoor swimming pool.

Among the major events of the international format - the rally "Amul-Khazar 2018", the school cultural and sports festival of the countries of the Caspian region, the 2018 World Weightlifting Championship.

The Concept of the foreign policy course of Turkmenistan for the period 2022-2028 set the task of full-fledged, effective integration of the country into the system of the world Olympic movement. With the holding of Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan has entered a number of states that are capable of hosting major sports events of international scale and has become even more attractive for the international sports community. In view of this, a comprehensive plan for the preparation and holding of international sports competitions in Turkmenistan is being prepared for the near future.