2026 Lhasa Shoton Festival Horse Racing Competition to Be Held on August 14–15

Dragon Media News Desk

The 2026 Lhasa Shoton Festival Horse Racing Competition will be held in Lhasa, Xizang Autonomous Region, on August 14 and 15.

Approved by the Lhasa municipal government, the two-day event will be jointly organized by the Lhasa Municipal Sports Bureau and the Lhasa Municipal Ethnic Affairs Commission. The competition will take place at the horse racing ground in northern Lhasa.

According to the organizers, the event aims to further preserve and promote the outstanding traditional culture of the Chinese nation while enriching the cultural and sporting activities available to people of different ethnic groups.

The competition is also intended to promote integrated development across commerce, tourism, culture, sports and health, while providing a platform for equestrian enthusiasts from across Xizang to exchange experience and showcase their skills.

Equestrian enthusiasts, professional riders and inheritors of traditional sports from seven cities and prefectures across Xizang are expected to participate.

The programme will feature two traditional equestrian performance events and eight competitive equestrian events.

The competition will be hosted by the Lhasa Municipal Sports Bureau and the Lhasa Municipal Ethnic Affairs Commission. The Xizang Autonomous Region Social and Ethnic Traditional Sports Guidance and Management Center and the Lhasa Sports Federation will be responsible for implementation, with support from the Xizang Autonomous Region Equestrian Association.

The Shoton Festival is one of Xizang’s major traditional cultural celebrations. By incorporating horse racing and traditional equestrian performances into this year’s programme, organizers expect the event to contribute further to the promotion of local culture, sports and tourism.