Uthen Kukheaw of Thailand in action during a Mixed Doubles Bronze match at the Teqball Tour in Qingdao, China on August 6, 2023. (Photo by Alex Plavevski/EPA/EFE)

In this October 6, 1976 file photo a member of a Thai political faction strikes at the lifeless body of a hanged student outside Thammasat University in Bangkok October 6, 1976. For some Thais, the bloody events of October 6, 1976 are still a nightmare. On that day, heavily armed security forces shot up Bangkok's Thammasat University campus and killed scores of students, while right-wing vigilantes captured would-be escapees, subjecting them to ghoulish lynchings. (Photo by Neal Ulevich/AP Photo)

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.

British driver Elfyn Evans and co-driver Scott Martin compete in their Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 during the Artigas stage of the WRC Rally Paraguay, 10th stage of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), near Encarnacion, Paraguay on August 30, 2025. (Photo by Luis Robayo/AFP Photo)

Alpine driver Pierre Gasly of France slides off the track during a qualifying session at the Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix auto race, Friday, November 21, 2025 in Las Vegas. (Photo by Nick Didlick/AP Photo)

Fans attend “The Batman” special screening at BFI IMAX Waterloo on February 23, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Warner Bros.)

Dancers are warming up backstage during the Tango Dancing Tournament at the XIII International Tango Festival in Medellin, Colombia, on June 18, 2019. The Tango Festival takes place between the 16th and 24th of June. (Photo by Joaquin Sarmiento/AFP Photo)

A girl cools off in a public fountain in Vilnius, Lithuania, Wednesday, August 16, 2023. The heat wave continues in Lithuania as temperatures rise to as high as 32 degrees Celsius (89.6 degrees Fahrenheit). (Photo by Mindaugas Kulbis/AP Photo)