Shchuchinsk is a city in northern-central Kazakhstan, located 75 kilometres south-east of Kokshetau on Lake Shchuchye. It is the seat of Burabay District in Akmola Region and is the centre of a large agricultural area.

Vladimir Mikhaylovich Smirnov is a Kazakh former cross-country skier of Russian descent who raced from the 1982 until 1991 for the USSR and, later, for Kazakhstan. He is the first Olympic champion from independent Kazakhstan and the most decorated Olympian in history of Kazakhstan. He is also a vice president of the International Biathlon Union. Smirnov is a former member of International Olympic Committee.