2013 China Equestrian Festival to kick off

The 2013 China Equestrian Festival, which will start on Saturday in Chengdu, Sichuan province, has attracted 36 teams from 12 provinces, including the top two teams from this years' National Games, said Liu Shenhao, chief judge of the contests.

The four-day event will hold five contests: the 2013 CEF Eventing, the CEF Show-jumping Grand Prix, the National Tour Racing Finals, the 2013 Sichuan Provincial Barrel Racing and the 1st Chengdu Young Riders' Competition.

New to the festival, the 2013 CEF Eventing has three competitions - Dressage, Cross-country and Show-jumping.

The champion team Guangdong and the runner-up of the National Games Tibet will join the competition, Liu said.

The 1st Chengdu Young Riders' Competition, which aims to promote equestrian among children, will feature 25 local riders aged from 8 to 14, Liu said.

The arena and other support facilities have been fully upgraded to meet the needs of this year's contests, said Cai Shengjin, construction director of the Chengdu Jinma International Racecourse.

A standard cross-country track as long as 4,500 meters was recently built to host the cross-country competition, Cai said.

Home to the contests and opening ceremony, the Chengdu Jinma International Racecourse is one of the best in China and has reached world standards, Cai said.

There will also be an equestrian forum and cultural activities including horse-themed calligraphy, paintings, photos and horse-gear exhibitions.