The Saryarka Velodrome, completed in 2011, is a striking ribbon-like building west of the centre, hosting Olympic-standard track cycling and other indoor sports. The wood-and-steel exterior was designed to evoke the curves of a Kazakh saddle; the interior is one of the world's largest indoor velodromes, with 6,000 seats.
For most visitors the building is an architectural drive-by rather than a planned stop — events worth attending are infrequent and tend to be domestic competitions or occasional international meets. The complex is part of a cluster of sports venues built for the 2011 Asian Winter Games, including the nearby Alau Ice Palace.