Famous people of Uzbekistan

Famous people of our time:

Sevara Nazarkhan is an Uzbek singer, songwriter, and musician. Her musical style incorporates Uzbek folk and contemporary music. Nazarkhan has achieved worldwide fame and has collaborated with high-profile international artists. In 2004, Nazarkhan received the BBC Radio 3 World Music Award in the category "Best Asian Artist".

Akgul Charievna Amanmuradova is a professional female tennis player from Uzbekistan. In 2005, she reached her first-ever WTA singles final at the Tashkent Open, held in the capital of her home country, where she was the runner-up to 16-year-old Michaëlla Krajicek of the Netherlands. She repeated this performance in 2009, where she lost the finals to Shahar Pe'er of Israel. In 2011, she reached her biggest ITF singles final at the President's Cup held in Astana, Kazakhstan. where she was beaten by Vitalia Diatchenko of Russia.

Djamolidine Abdoujaparov is a former professional road racing cyclist from Uzbekistan. Abdoujaparov was a sprinter, nicknamed "The Tashkent Terror" as he was so ferocious in the sprints. His unorthodox and often erratic sprinting caused a number of crashes. He is one of five riders to have won the points competition in all three Grand Tours. Abdoujaparov was born in Tashkent. A graduate of the Soviet sports programme, he came into his prime just as his country gained independence; after initial difficulties he signed for a Western professional team and became one of the world's top sprinters. Abdoujaparov had numerous tussles with Laurent Jalabert in the Tour de France's green sprinters jersey competition in the early 1990s. In 1991 Abdoujaparov won the competition despite a spectacular crash during the final stage on the Champs-Élysées in Paris, where he collided with the barriers 100m before the finish and somersaulted into the air. Despite still holding enough points to win the sprinters' jersey, he had to cross the line unaided. Members of his team picked him up, put him back on the bike, and he rode slowly over the last few meters, medical staff walking alongside him.

Oksana Aleksandrovna Chusovitina is an Olympic medalist and World Champion gymnast who has competed for Germany since 2006. She was formerly a citizen of, and a competitor for, the Soviet Union and Uzbekistan. To date, Chusovitina's career in elite gymnastics has spanned more than 20 years. She won the USSR Junior Nationals in 1988 and began competing at the international level in 1989, before many of her current rivals were even born. She is the only female gymnast ever to compete in six Olympic Games, and is one of only two female gymnasts to compete at the Olympics under three different national teams: the Unified Team in 1992; Uzbekistan in 1996, 2000 and 2004; and Germany in 2008 and 2012. Chusovitina has also competed in 10 World Championships, three Asian Games and three Goodwill Games. In addition, Chusovitina holds the record for the most individual world championships medals on a single event. Chusovitina is also one of only a handful of women, along with Cuban Leyanet Gonzalez, Soviet legend Larisa Latynina, and Dutch Olympian Suzanne Harmes, to return to high-level gymnastics and international competition after becoming a mother.

Artur Grigorian is an Uzbek professional boxer of Armenian descent. Grigorian is a former WBO Lightweight Champion. He retained his lightweight belt for a record of 17 times and held his belt for seven years, six months and twenty days; nearly as long as record holder Benny Leonard held his lightweight title.

Rustam Kasimdzhanov is an Uzbekistani chess Grandmaster, best known for winning the FIDE World Chess Championship 2004. He was born in Tashkent, in the former Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic. He is an ethnic Uzbek.

Alisher Burkhanovich Usmanov is an Uzbek-born Russian business magnate. According to the 2011 edition of Forbes magazine, the oligarch Usmanov is Russia's richest man, with a fortune estimated at $18.1 billion, and the world's 28th richest person. According to the December 2012 Bloomberg Billionaires Index, he has an estimated net worth of $17.3 billion, making him the 39th richest person in the world. In April 2013, the Sunday Times listed him as the richest person in the UK, ousting Lakshmi Mittal for the number one spot, coming in with a net worth of $17.7 billion according to RussianCapitalists.com. He built his wealth through mining and lumber operations, and investments, and is the majority shareholder of Metalloinvest, a Russian industrial conglomerate, which he founded to manage Gazprom's metals interests. Usmanov is also a co‑owner of the media holding company which comprises 7TV and Muz‑TV federal television channels and 33 regional TV broadcasting stations. He owns the Kommersant and Sekret Firmy Publishing Houses, shares in the company SUP, which controls Internet website Livejournal.com and Internet newspaper Gazeta.ru. He is a co‑owner of Russia's second-largest mobile telephone operator, MegaFon, and co-owner of Mail.ru, the largest Internet company in the Russian-speaking world, which owns stakes in popular web portals like Odnoklassniki, Vkontakte, Facebook and others.

Yulduz Usmonova is a well-known Uzbek singer and actress. She has achieved widespread fame in Uzbekistan, other parts of Central Asia, and more recently in Turkey. Usmonova has also acted in a number of Uzbek films.