Boxer Shakhram Giyasov was fined for 3 base calculation units ($87) for animal cruelty, the Ministry of Ecology of Uzbekistan announced.
At the end of 2024, a video appeared online showing Shakhram Giyasov wrestling with a bear in the Buka Gym. The boxer is a brand ambassador of the company.
In the video, the athele repeatedly wrestles the bear to the ground. The animal is on a leash and wearing a muzzle. Social media users condemned the athlete’s actions, and the animal welfare organization Mehr va Oqibat called for responsibility.
Later, Buka Gym apologized for the video filmed in their gym.
The Ministry of Ecology and the Ministry of Internal Affairs investigated the situation and talked to the participants and organizers of the video.
Shakhram Giyasov was called to the Ministry of Ecology, where he was given “a detailed explanation about the prohibition of keeping wild animals by individuals and using them for various purposes, as well as the inadmissibility of animal cruelty”.
“Shakhram Giyasov admitted his mistake and stated that such a situation would not happen again,” the Ministry of Ecology stressed.
Buka Gym issued a statement on 29 December, saying the company managed to find the owner of the animal and agreed to purchase it “to transfer to professionals”.
“We contacted responsible employees of the Ministry of Ecology and received recommendations regarding the animal’s future. It was confirmed that the owner had all the necessary documents from the Ministry of Ecology allowing him to keep, breed and exhibit such animals in Uzbekistan,” the statement said.
The company donated the bear to Fergana zoo and assumed all expenses for its upkeeping.
