Gansu remains in vanguard of global trade

A herdsman drives horses at Shandan horse farm in Gansu on Aug 8. [Fan Peishen/Xinhua]

Great endurance

For more than 50 years from 1949, the year New China was founded, the Shandan horse farm was managed by the People's Liberation Army, which bred horses boasting supreme physical fitness and great endurance.

The farm now serves as a major facility where horses are bred and trained for racing and also equestrian competitions. Species are brought in from abroad to interbreed with the Shandan horses and improve their speed.

"My father was a herdsman, so I could ride a horse at age 6. The horses are like my own children," said Liu Guonian, 43, who has been breeding and herding horses at the farm for more than 20 years. "As the grassland environment improves, more people are visiting the farm, and our income is rising. In addition to horse breeding, local herders also work in the tourism industry."

Lin Wei-kang, a young person from Taiwan who visited the farm last year, said, "Standing on the grassland, I seemed to see the galloping military horses from ancient times, and I thought of those brave generals and soldiers."