This aerial photograph taken on April 22, 2024 shows a flooded island after heavy rains in Qingyuan, in southern China's Guangdong province. More than 100,000 people have been evacuated due to heavy rain and fatal floods in southern China, with the government issuing its highest-level rainstorm warning for the affected area on April 23. (Photo by AFP Photo/China Stringer Network)

A girl in a military uniform poses for a photo after the see-off ceremony before the launch in Jiuquan, Gansu province, China, 25 April 2024. China's Shenzhou-18 manned spaceflight mission with three astronauts is the third manned spaceflight mission of China Space Station's development phase. The mission will last for about six months and the crew will carry out tasks such as installation, commissioning, maintenance, repair, and experiments in space. (Photo by Wu Hao/EPA/EFE)

Heads for humanoid robots lie on a table at the office of developer Ex-Robots in Dalian, Liaoning province, China on June 6, 2024. (Photo by Florence Lo/Reuters)

Aerial view of people circling around bonfires to celebrate the Torch Festival on Axilixi Prairie on July 20, 2024 in Bijie, Guizhou Province of China. (Photo by Luo Dafu/VCG via Getty Images)

The photo taken on September 17, 2024 shows a villager walking over burning charcoal to perform a traditional fire-walking ritual called “Lianhuo” at Shuangfeng village in Jinhua, in eastern China's Zhejiang province. (Photo by AFP Photo/China Stringer Network)

Chinese hostesses, who serve the delegates of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and National People's Congress, have souvenir photos taken in front of the Great Hall of the People during sessions of the CPPCC and NPC held in Beijing, China Tuesday, March 4, 2014. (Photo by Andy Wong/AP Photo)

“A girl arrives at the parking lot wearing tiny leather shorts and sits on the back of a bike with a horse power of more than 1,000 CC. Next to her a man gets ready to ride, wearing a skeleton mask. It’s more than a fashion show, it’s an extravaganza on two wheels along Chinese roads”. – Carlos Barria. Photo: A couple rides their motorcycle at the Qian Dao Lake rally, on May 11, 2013. (Photo by Carlos Barria/Reuters)

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.