down to Sha Tin on specially designed and
disinfected floats.
The training centre has a turf track sup-
porting races from 1200 metres to 2400
metres and two all-weather dirt tracks in-
side. It also has an 1100-metre uphill grass
gallop, the first of its kind in the mainland
and Hong Kong. The uphill gallop consists
of a 1.54% climb from start to finish along
the hill overlooking the whole Conghua
complex. Trackwork commenced at 6 a.m.
the morning we were there. There are cur-
rently 500 stable staff in Conghua, most
of them recruited locally and who had no
previous horsemanship knowledge. To
contribute to the development of equine
sports in mainland China, the Club provides
training for these local staff to become
work riders and horse grooms, and ex-
tends to a longer-range vision of develop-
ing veterinary personnel. The training that
the staff goes through is similar to what the
Club provides to its staff in Hong Kong.
Beside the racetrack is a parade ring, the
broadcasting centre, the weighing room,
a medical room for injured riders, and a
