A 180 degrees rotated photograph shows the shadows of Polina (L), a six-year-old Belarusian first grade school girl, and her father, cast on the street while on their way to Polina's first day of school, which marks the traditional start of the academic year, in Minsk, Belarus, 02 September 2019. The start of a new academic year in Belarus, officially called Day of Knowledge, is a festive day for all school and university students in the country. (Photo by Tatyana Zenkovich/EPA/EFE)

It’s a tradition that dates back hundreds of years, where two stallions fight over a female to ring the Chinese new year. And when it’s the Year of the Horse, the fights are considered to be even more significant. They’re held in small villages across southern China and have been condemned by animal rights groups, including Hong-Kong based Animals Asia. But those who participate in the events defend the fights and insist they take care of the animals.

A pregnant woman poses on June 19, 2018 in Vertou, western France. France had an estimated population of 68.4 million by January 1, 2024, representing a further year-on-year increase of 0.3 percent, limited by a marked drop in the birth rate, the INSEE national statistics bureau of France reported on January 16, 2024. In 2023, 678,000 babies were born in France, 6.6 percent fewer than the previous year, the lowest number of births in any year since 1946. Over the same period, there were 631,000 deaths, down 6.5 percent on 2022, a year marked by the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic and episodes of extreme heat. (Photo by Loic Venance/AFP Photo)

A performer dressed as Empress Huang of the China's Forbidden City takes part in a musical performance at a shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur on January 22, 2017 as part of the upcoming Lunar New Year celebrations marking the Year of the Rooster. (Photo by Manan Vatsyayana/AFP Photo)

First year cadets of the Military University of Communication smile before an oath-taking ceremony in St.Petersburg September 6, 2014. Some 700 first year cadets of the academy attended the ceremony before starting their studies. (Photo by Alexander Demianchuk/Reuters)

A Saudi police officer receives emergency calls at a call center, ahead of the Hajj pilgrimage in the Muslim holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, August 6, 2019. The hajj occurs once a year during the Islamic lunar month of Dhul-Hijja, the 12th and final month of the Islamic calendar year. (Photo by Amr Nabil/AP Photo)

Aoife Ni Heochaidh enjoys the sunrise as she welcomes winter solstice at the 5000-year-old stone age passage tomb of Newgrange in the Boyne Valley, as entry inside the chamber is closed for the second year due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Newgrange, Ireland, December 21, 2021. (Photo by Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters)

The Heavens opened as students from Wells Blue school year 13 pupils arrived at The Bishop's Palace in Wells, Somerset on June 30, 2022 for their end of year school prom. (Photo by Jason Bryant/Apex News)