Yaks may be the best way to plow fields in Tibet, but they are also surprisingly fast runners over short distances.
Yak racing is a spectator sport held at many traditional festivals of Tibet, Northern Pakistan and Mongolia, and can be one of the most entertaining parts of a Tibetan horse festival,[1] in gatherings which integrate popular dances and songs with traditional physical games.[2] Each of the competitors, which commonly number 10 or 12, mounts his yak, and the yaks run towards the opposite end of the race course in a sprint. Yaks can run surprisingly fast over short distances. The winner is usually given several khata (a traditional Tibetan scarf) as well as a small amount of prize money. Yak racing is also known to be performed in parts of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and in Pamir in Pakistan.[3]
Yak racing became an integral part of the Jyekundo (Yushu in Chinese) Horse Festival in 2006. It was held 20km south of Jyekundo near the small township of Batang with over 20,000 people in attendance. For the 2007 horse festival all 6 counties of Yushu Tibet Autonomous Prefecture are combining resources and financing together to provide a larger festival, called Khampa Arts Festival (Chin. Kangba Yishu Jie) in the prefecure capital of Jyekundo with an anticipated 40,000 to 50,000 people in attendance.
In Tibet, yaks are decorated and honored by the families they are part of.
Yak racing is also an integral part of the nineteen-day Darma Festival in Gyangze,[4] and a comic highlight of the Damxung Horse Festival also known as the Dajyur.[5]
Yak racing is also a common sport in the farming and stockbreeding areas on the grand Tibetan Plateau. They hold yak racing events annually to celebrate the good harvest, and they pray for good weather during the coming year. [2]
In the northern Khangai Mountains of Mongolia, the traditional Yak Festival is held near the lake Terkhiin Tsagaan Nuur every year, on the first and second days of August. Nomadic culture in the Khangai Mountains is very strong, and the area has one of the highest concentrations of yaks in the world. The event is eagerly anticipated by the community and great fun is had by all participants. The event includes yak racing and showing, wild stallion and yak rodeo riding, milking contests and other traditional Naadam events of horse racing, wrestling and archery. [6]
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