Forty-three-year-old Huang Zuping hopes to become the first Chinese competitor to represent his country in the equestrian event at the Games.

China has a long history and tradition of horse breeding and riding, but in modern equestrianism, Chinese riders lag far behind their European counterparts.

Huang Zuping rides to his Olympic dream to 2008.He hopes to become the first Chinese rider to compete in the equestrain event.[China Daily]

His confidence comes from his natural talent, a well-designed training program in Germany, and help from four-time Olympic Team Gold rider Ludger Beerbaum.

Spurred on by a dream

For the first 30 years of his life, Huang had little connection with the world of sport. The graduate from Beijing University of Chemical Technology became a government official, dealing with national economic planning and regulation.

In 1995, the official-turned entrepreneur first saddled up, during a weekend trip to a country club in Beijing.

Huang soon fell in love with the sport, and every day he would drive to the country club and ride. As his skills improved rapidly, he began to take professional training with national equestrian champions.

"I found that equestrianism is a very profound sport, and it triggered a lot of interest," Huang said.

But if Beijing had failed to win the right to host the 2008 Games, Huang would not have thought about appearing in the Olympics.

"When I heard the news that night (July 13, 2001), the idea hit me suddenly," he recalled. "Even I was astonished by this crazy thought."

At that time, Huang had already achieved success at national-level amateur events, and he finished 13th at his first national championships in 2001. But with only six years of riding under his belt, Huang's experience and skills were far from Olympic standard.

"I could not wait any more and there were still six years to go," he recalled.

Using his international experience and after studying his options carefully, Huang eventually chose Germany as his training base.

In 2002, he closed his company and went to Germany with his two stableboys, both from the countryside of Sichuan Province.

They first went to the largest stallion raising base in Germany, Stall Ramsbrock in Menslage. With the help of some local friends, Huang could enjoy a favorable price of only US$2,000 per month for his training.

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