China Horse Club a pivot for global equestrian ties

President Xi Jinping's vision of China playing a lead role in sharing expertise and talent is reflected in the nation's development of equestrian sports where Chinese people are beginning to once again embrace their long-held cultural ties to the horse.

China has entered an unprecedented period of international collaboration by establishing the BRICS' New Development Bank and proposing the Belt and Road Initiative. The nation's horse racing industry has followed a similar path of cooperation.

More than 5,000 years of equestrian sports beats through China's history, stirring memories of international relations and the promotion of Chinese culture. Today, the horse is again at the center of cross-border ties. In recent years, the China Horse Club has led the way in building international bridges in the equestrian sports industry.

"The China Horse Club is trying to make a positive contribution to building international relations, creating new opportunities and promoting Chinese culture through the horse," said Teo Ah Khing, the club's founder and chairman.

The club won't specify its primary goals for the coming months but these may include a multinational racing event held on the Chinese mainland that would be akin to an Olympics-style event for thoroughbreds.

Previous initiatives of the club and partnerships with it include:

Hubei province won two gold medals at the 2015 Games of Traditional Ethnic Minorities in Ordos, the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, in August;

A Chinese-registered thoroughbred won a race at the Santa Anita racecourse in the United States in September, the home of the 2014 Breeders' Cup;

World-renowned thoroughbred industry leaders are participating in the growth of China's equestrian industry, which is creating new job opportunities for people in rural areas;

Funding educational institutions such as the Inner Mongolia Agricultural University.

Teo said, "The opportunity may exist to create occasions that will allow for Chinese talent, which has been fostered internationally, to return home and for other nations to participate in China. We may even use the horse to celebrate friendships with others."

This story is provided by the China Horse Club.

(China Daily 11/07/2015 page4)