Capital: Ulan Bator Population: 2.9 million Area: 1,564,116km²	Mongolia
2002 Busan Asian Games: 1 Gold, 1 Silver, 12 Bronze; Rank 26/44 2004 Athens Olympics: Competed, but no medals 2005 Asian Indoor Game I: Competed, but no medals 2007 Asian Indoor Game II: 1 Silver, 4 Bronze; Rank 23/45 2008 Beijing Olympics: 2 Gold, 2 Silver; Rank 31 /204

ABOUT

Mongolia meaning Mongol Nation is a landlocked country and borders the Peoples Republic of China and Russia.

The Mongolian Empire was formed in 1206 and gained independence from China on 11 July 1921.

The capital is Ulaanbaatar. Mongolia is the realm of the great warrior Genghis Khan. Popular attractions include, The National Museum of Mongolian History, Orkhon Khurkhree a magnificent waterfall, Erdene Zuu the first ever Buddhist monastery, Yolin Am the vulture canyon and much more.

CULTURAL

Like every other nomadic culture, Mongolian culture is well-known for its hospitality.

Outside the capital, horse is still the main mode of. Nomads are extremely proud of their riding skills and horse racing is a favourite pastime.

Nomadic families follow a seasonal routine, moving the herds to new grazing land based on the time of year.

Daily responsibilities are divided evenly among family members and no one person's work is considered more important than another's.

Traditionally, men take care of the horses, the herds and make saddles, weapons and hunt. Women cook, milk animals, take care of the children and make clothing. Despite their enterprise, however, Mongolians are not self-sufficient.

Since ancient times, they have traded with surrounding civilizations far grain, rice, tea, silk and cotton. The traditional Mongolian dwelling is known as a yurt.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, lamaseries were built throughout the country. Many of them started as yurt-temples.

When they needed to be enlarged to accommodate the growing number of worshippers, the Mongolian architects used structures with pyramidal roofs to approximate to the round shape of a yurt. Further enlargement led to a quadratic shape of the temples.

SPORTS

The main festival is Naadam, which has been organised for centuries, consists of three Mongolian traditional sports, archery, horse-racing and wrestling.

Another very popular activity called Shagaa is the "flicking" of sheep ankle bones at a target several feet away, using a flicking motion of the finger to send the small bone flying at targets and trying to knock the target bones off the platform.

Horse riding and Wrestling are the most popular of all Mongol sports. It is the highlight of the Naadam festival.

Nowadays, track and field sports, football, basketball, volley-ball, skating, skiing, motorcycle racing, mountain climbing, chess and other sports are gaining wide popularity.