The Second National Barrel Racing Championships will be held in Taipus Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, on July 27-30, as part of the celebrations of the autonomous region's 60th anniversary.

A window to Chinese horse culture

Located in the central Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, 350 km north from Beijing, Taipus Banner has been long regarded as the birthplace of Chinese horse culture: between 1644 and 1761 the Qing Dynasty had a royal horse-raising base here, where over 70,000 horses were groomed and trained.

In recent years there has been a resurgence in horse culture in the Banner; the Taipus Banner Horse Base has now been approved by the Chinese Association of Horse Industry as one of its branches. Moreover, several programs related to horse culture, such as a base where horses are trained for Chinese grassland sport (currently under construction), a Chinese horse ball and horse-raising base, a tourist center for the Mongol grassland horse culture, etc., have injected new vigor into the Banner.

Employing a "harmonious and ecology-centered" strategy, the Banner intends to cultivate and promote horse culture by turning the Championships into a well-known horse culture festival of lasting influence. For this purpose, organizers have planned several activities to highlight Mongol culture. These cover not only exciting barrel racing competitions, but also an endurance race between horses from Beijing and Inner Mongolia, a horse fair, a horse equipment fair, investment talks and a large fire soirée.

The "Miss Grassland" beauty pageant and "Super Cowboy" talent show, which proved immensely popular during the First Barrel Racing Championships in 2006, will once more regale participants and visitors alike. Fashionable youth from big cities will have the opportunity to take on their Mongolian peers in equitation techniques, in an event that promises something for everyone. The Banner, with its rich equine tradition, seems set to upgrade itself and develop as a role model for a socialist new countryside that combines residential community, tourism resources, as well as investment opportunities.

A green sport

It is believed that barrel racing first saw competitive light in the state of Texas, in the United States. The sport revolves around horse and rider combining the horse's athletic ability and the rider's horsemanship skills to safely and successfully maneuver the horse around three 55 gallon closed-end metal barrels placed in a cloverleaf pattern in the center of an arena. Today, barrel racing is becoming a common enterprise globally. Not only does barrel racing not have an age limit, but is open to both sexes.

Equestrianism, one of the symbols of grassland culture in China, is an emerging fashionable green sport that often represents freedom and passion for the jockeys. In recent years China has seen a mushrooming of equine culture, especially after Hong Kong Special Administrative Region was selected to co-host the Equestrianism Event of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.