China champs at the bit

The race is on to build a nursery for thoroughbred racehorses. However, it's likely to be a canter rather than a gallop. Wang Kaihao reports.

Horseracing is common on grasslands inhabited by Mongolians, but something has suddenly made such scenes look more exotic. When eight thoroughbred horseracing competitions began on the turf at Hohhot, capital of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, on Sept 21, the stakeholders of this event unanimously believed it a milestone for an almost non-existent industry on the Chinese mainland.

More than 30 thoroughbred horses from Australia, Ireland, and France joined their Chinese counterparts to gallop for the finale of the first China Equestrian Cultural Festival, which is claimed by organizers to be the highest-level international horseracing event ever held on the mainland.