Recently, Guangdong Technion – Israel Institute of Technology (GTIIT) opened a special class. The students attended an equestrian practice lesson inside GTIIT South Campus with great joy.

Basic knowledge and theories of equestrian were introduced at the lecture, allowing the students to gain a general understanding of the sport.

During the demonstration session, professional jockeys performed riding on the track field of south campus. A sequence of horse gaits like walk, trot and canter were displayed. After pacing for a while, a jockey on the horse crossed the obstacles with great agility, winning the students' applause.

Under the coach's guidance, the selected students successfully mounted on the back of the horses. After finishing the basics of training horses, they achieved a breakthrough and began to understand the charm of the sport.

"I was a bit nervous, but most of the time I felt excited about it," said Liu Weike, one of the students trying riding. He said the equestrian activity was different from riding service offered in some scenic areas that provided fixed handles only. Holding the soft horse rein was novel and he looked forward to participating in such activities again in GTIIT.

It's the first time for many students to interact with horses closely. Guided by the coach, they patted the horses' mane and touched their neck to express friendship. The equestrian activity offered a chance for GTIIT students to experience multi-culture and expand their vision within the campus.

Text/Photos: GTIIT News & Public Affairs, Zhao Nanxiang, Zhou Shiwei