Happy New Year of the Horse!

HORSE Sport Ireland extends its best New Year wishes to our Chinese friends abroad and here in Ireland on the arrival of  the Year of the Horse, in the 4712th year of the Chinese calendar.

The Dublin Chinese New Year Festival, building on the success of the last six years, says farewell to the Snake, and enters 2014 with hope and encouragement for positive developments and improvements in the year ahead, and celebrates the deepening friendship between Ireland, the land of the horse, and China.

In 2014 we greet the Wood Horse. This is considered a fortunate year that brings luck and good things.

The year also coincides with a growth in the popularity of horse riding in China, a legacy of the coverage of the Beijing and London Olympic equestrian events.

Membership numbers are growing in riding clubs and horse numbers are rising.

A whole host of events are planned for the Dublin Chinese New Year Festival, which will run from New Year’s Eve, January 30, to February 14.

One of the flagship events is a carnival, which will take place in Meeting House Square, Temple Bar, on Sunday, February 2.

Dublin Lord Mayor Oisin Quinn said: “Our twinning relationship with Beijing continues to flourish and we aim to build and develop this in the coming year, especially in the area of cultural exchange.”

He said he wanted to acknowledge the positive contribution made to the city over several years by the Chinese community.

For more information on the Dublin Chinese New Year Festival click HERE