In antiquity the Kyrgyz people used to organize horse-racing dedicated to great feasts marking the milestones of nomadic life the birth of a child, marriage, ash (funeral feast), arrival of an important guest.

In the beginning of the 20th century, under domination of the Sickle and Hammer, they were forbidden as "relics of the agonizing feudalism". Along with the development of the high-speed European hippodrome races based on some new kind of horses bred by Moscow zootechnicians, the Soviet power developed the notion of the epoch of the horse being in decline, and the riding animal of the Kyrgyz was doomed to extinction, as well as all the traditions associated with that horse.

Today in Kyrgyzstan, the agriculture is the major source of employment in the country, as more than two-thirds of the population live in rural area. Agricultural machines of former collective farms are obsolescent and unsuitable to use due to shortage of resources. A car is still considered to be a luxury that most of the people cannot afford, and so, the horse once again has become indispensable to the rural people, agricultural workers, and shepherds.

"At Chabysh 2005" festival is a part of the project drawn up in 2001. The objectives: to revive the Kyrgyz horse now faced with extinction, to set the standards of the breed, to resume the breeding of the Kyrgyz horse perfectly adapted to the habitat and work in this area, to participate in revival of traditions associated with this horse craftsmanship, literature, fine arts, music, songs, sports with the full awareness that the restoration of the traditional horse-racing is the key factor here.

"At Chabysh 2005" is a cultural and sporting festival which will be held in Bishkek ( 29 - 30 of October ) then in Issyk-Kul - Barskoon, Tamga, Tosor ( 5 - 6 - 7th of November). It will start in Bishkek and then go on to the Issyk-Kul region. Besides, the event fits in the frameworks of the "Cultural exchange for the peoples of mountain regions" and developing ecotourism.

"At Chabysh 2005" is to be organized by the Institution Kyrgyz Aty, with the support of the Ministry of Agreculture, the Ministry of Tourism and Sport, the Ministry of Culture of Kyrgyzstan and the Embassy of France. Financing of the event will be carried out by numerous partners and sponsors from Europe, USA, Canada and Kyrgyzstan.

By Jacqueline Ripart