Humo Tashkent, a professional ice hockey team was established in 2019 with the aim of joining Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), a top level Eurasian league in the future. Humo will join the second-tier Supreme Hockey League (VHL) for the 2019–20 season. Humo play their games at the Humo Ice Dome which cost over €175 million in construction; both the team and arena derive their name from the mythical Huma bird, a symbol of happiness and freedom. Uzbekistan Hockey Federation (UHF) began preparation for forming national ice hockey team in joining IIHF competitions. Before Uzbekistan's independence in 1991, the country was part of the Soviet Union football, rugby union, basketball, ice hockey, and handball national teams. After independence, Uzbekistan created its own football, rugby union, basketball and futsal national teams. Tennis is a very popular sport in Uzbekistan, especially after Uzbekistan's sovereignty in 1991. Uzbekistan has its own Tennis Federation called the "UTF" (Uzbekistan Tennis Federation), created in 2002. Uzbekistan also hosts an International WTA tennis tournament, the "Tashkent Open", held in Uzbekistan's capital city. This tournament has been held since 1999, and is played on outdoor hard courts. The most notable active players from Uzbekistan are Denis Istomin and Akgul Amanmuradova. Chess is quite popular in Uzbekistan. The country boasts Rustam Kasimdzhanov, who was the FIDE World Chess Champion in 2004, and many junior players like Nodirbek Abdusattorov, the 2021 World Rapid Chess Champion. The Uzbek team - consisting of GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov, GM Nodirbek Yakubboev, GM Javokhir Sindarov, GM Shamsiddin Vokhidov and GM Jahongir Vakhidov won gold at the 44th Chess Olympiad in Chennai. Other popular sports in Uzbekistan include basketball, judo, team handball, baseball, taekwondo, and futsal. Ulugbek Rashitov, won the country's first olympic gold medal in taekwondo, at the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo 2021. In 2022, the World Judo Championships were held in Tashkent. See also Health in Uzbekistan Outline of Uzbekistan References Further reading Nahaylo, Bohdan and Victor Swoboda. Soviet Disunion: A History of the Nationalities problem in the USSR (1990) excerpt Rashid, Ahmed. The Resurgence of Central Asia: Islam or Nationalism? (2017) Smith, Graham, ed. The Nationalities Question in the Soviet Union (2nd ed. 1995) External links National Information Agency of Uzbekistan Lower House of Uzbekistan parliament Digital Agency Uzbekistan To Business Digital Agency Chief of State and Cabinet Members General information Uzbekistan. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Uzbekistan Corruption Profile from the