The picture shows the contestants and their families at the Ma Chao competition. Photo by Baisha
China News Service, Xilin Gol, January 28th, Title: Grassland "Limited to Winter": Battle of Honor on Horseback
Author Aolan
A pure natural grassland track created with blue sky, white clouds and vast snowfields, created by herders The charm of horseback racing displayed by whips and galloping horses, as well as the folk culture composed of intangible cultural heritage skills, special food, ethnic songs and dances...
These are all the first "Mongolian Horse Spirit Cup" China's Horse Capital Xilin Gol Winter Mongolia The shock brought by the Ma Super League (referred to as Ma Super League).
The picture shows herders dressed in costumes and driving their horses to attend the opening ceremony. Photo by Baisha
One day ago, the two-month horse racing came to an end on the Xilin Gol Grassland. The competition attracts tens of thousands of local riders, over 90% of whom are herders. Therefore, many people call it “the Ma Chao of herdsmen”.
Xilin Gol Grassland is one of the main natural grasslands in Inner Mongolia. There are 260,000 horses in the area and the horse culture is rich. Horse racing is one of the "Three Men's Arts" of the Mongolian people and is deeply loved by herdsmen.
In the autumn of 2023, Ma Chao kicked off at Ulan Halagasumudab Shiletugacha in West Ujimqin Banner. The competition takes the form of a four-level league, with four levels: Gacha (village), Sumu (township) town, banner county (district), and league level. The competition starts from Gacha (village), and is selected step by step, and finally competes for the league. level finals. The Ma Chao can be called the "super traffic" event on the Xilin Gol grassland this winter. A total of 136 games were held, attracting 100,000 participants.
The picture shows herdsmen waiting near the finish line of an endurance horse race. In the distance is a parking lot filled with cars. Photo by Cui Boqun
"It is said to be a Super League, but it is actually a large-scale entertainment event for herdsmen." Jia Meiyang has been a horse racing referee on the grassland for more than ten years and is also the chief referee of this final. "The Super League is a points system, and ours is a knockout system."
Taking into account the winter climate characteristics of northern China, the event has two events: a 15-kilometer endurance race and a 6,000-meter team relay race. As far as the reporter’s feelings at the finals were concerned, the 15-kilometer endurance race was even more exciting.
In the horse ultra-endurance race, the horse is the "protagonist" and the rider is more like a "tool man". According to the plan, the top 8 horses in each banner county will be selected to participate in the finals. In the end, the horse that reaches the finish line first wins and the rider gets respect. There is also a local custom that if you can touch a champion horse, you will have good luck.
The picture shows a galloping horse, running out of the afterimage. Photographed by Baisha
"In the national competition, my horse can stand out from many fast horses. I am so happy." In the final, the horse of Chaolumen, a herdsman from Huretu Nur, East Ujimqin Banner, won the prize. 3rd Place. He told reporters that his horse is 8 years old and is a victorious general. "It has (won) the championship 23 times and been the runner-up more than 10 times."
"The herdsmen do not value the prize money, but the honor." Jia Meiyang told reporters, "For the herdsmen, honor has three meanings: First, I am qualified to participate; second, I want to get a ranking; third, I want to get a good ranking."
Jia Meiyang recalled that there are no less than 2,000 large and small events on the Xilin Gol grassland every year, and most of the events include horse racing. . "Endurance racing has a long history on the grasslands. This kind of competition is suitable for the physique of Mongolian horses, and herders also like it. But this is the first time such a big event is held."
The picture shows the participating riders in the Horse Super League finals. Photo by Baisha
During the event, many outstanding riders with unique characteristics became stars on the grassland through self-media platforms and traditional media. Among them, there are young riders who are only 8 years old and have been driving for 5 years, there are disabled herdsmen who are going against the wind in the cold wind, there are husband and wife teams of herdsmen who are both participating in the competition, and there are many who are both jockeys and horse trainers. Grassland youth...
Herdsmen love Ma Chao. They not only love to participate in horse racing, but also love to watch horse racing. Even before the race started, the finish line was already crowded. The herdsmen were in small groups, many holding horses, and some standing on the roof of the car to watch, just to catch a glimpse of the horse crossing the finish line.
The picture shows a herdsman standing on the roof of his car, looking at the contestants.Photo by Cui Boqun
"We came here the day before yesterday, participated in the rehearsal of the opening ceremony yesterday, and will go back after watching the game today." Jiyatu is a herdsman in the East Ujimqin Banner, and his home is hundreds of kilometers away from the competition venue. When the reporter saw him, he was holding the horse at the finish line and had been waiting for more than an hour. It was very cold and he kept leading the horse back and forth.
The reporter learned during the interview that Xilingol has a vast territory, covering an area of nearly 180,000 square kilometers. Due to heavy snowfall in winter, inconvenient transportation, long distances and other reasons, some high-quality horses are unable to participate.
"The value of a horse will increase if it gets a ranking." Nan Ding, secretary of the party group of the Xilingol League's Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Bureau, told reporters that if you dig carefully, the "gold content" of Ma Chao is not low. "Horse saddles, horse accessories, Mongolian robes, homemade dairy products, own beef and mutton... can all increase the income of herdsmen."
"This is a great good thing for our herdsmen. It can not only enrich our lives, but also be a channel to increase our income." Nan Ding added.
"In addition to horse racing, we have also prepared interesting and highly participatory interactive activities such as archery, snow tug-of-war, and snow treasure hunts for herdsmen and tourists," said He Mingjian, director of the Culture, Sports, Tourism, Radio, Film and Television Bureau of Xilingol League, " What we hope to create is an event that can show the image of Xilin Gol and convey the concept of harmonious coexistence between man and nature." (End)
[Editor: Li Yan]
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