Sherman to ride in China
OPPORTUNITY: SA JOCKEY TO BE PART OF THIS YEAR’S CHINA EQUINE CULTURAL FESTIVAL Four international jockeys will take on Chinese counterparts.
Sherman Brown will be jetting off to China today to participate in the China Equine Cultural Festival in Ordos. Themed “Touching the World”, the 2017 event will be the sixth instalment of a festival that has quickly proven its worth as a promoter of grassroots racing in China.
Brown will be joined by three other international jockeys in Daniel Moor (Australia), Alexander Ivanskoy (Russia) and Sheldon Rodrigo (Trinidad and Tobago) and they will compete against some of China’s best young riders on Sunday in four races.
“I received a call from Deon Visser who used to train in South Africa who told me there was going to be an international meeting in China and asked whether I was interested in riding at the event,” said Brown yesterday.
“I told him that I was and he got the ball rolling.”
Brown has ridden overseas before specifically in Mauritius, where he was champion jockey, Dubai and Macau. “It’s a two-day event but the actual races are on Sunday. On Saturday we have to do press conferences and things like that.
“They are doing it to boost their racing. The whole event is a cultural thing to boost their racing and get people interested.
“We race on a sand track but they have redone the whole course and it looks amazing.”
While the money is quite decent for the visiting jockey Brown made it clear financial gain was not the reason for his decision to go.
“It’s not just for the money, it’s also for the experience.
"It will give me a chance to meet new people and I can also be an ambassador for South African racing.
“I’m very excited about the opportunity to travel to China.”
Ordos is famed for its equine culture and close proximity to Inner Mongolia’s grasslands.
“Bringing the world to China and China to the world remains embedded in the DNA of this event and the 2017 festival is no different,” said Teo Ah Khing, chairman of the event and organiser of the Inner Mongolia Desert Star Horse Industries.