Popular variations include keşkek in Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and northern Iraq;
Hareesa in the Arab world and Armenia; Halim in Bangladesh and West Bengal,
India; Khichra in Pakistan and India.
Indonesians Tony Gunawan also bears the distinction of winning a gold medal in Men's Doubles, representing two different countries,
2001 partnering with Halim Haryanto for Indonesia
and in 2005 partnering with Howard Bach to give the United States its first medal in the competition.