Bholothwa horses show off at the Mbhashe horse racing

Last weekend, Mbhashe Local Municipality organised a horse racing event, drawing horses, jockeys, and owners to Bhomela village in Dutywa.

Since the late Mr. Ngumbela created the horse racing grounds, Bhomela’s horse races have always drawn large crowds. However, this year has been different from previous years. Only a few horses from the Mbhashe towns were present.

Horse owners in Mbhashe claimed that they are also not invited to other areas, thus horses from towns like King William’s Town, Mthatha, Tsolo, or Qumbu were not there.

Wakrazulwa, Kumkani, Umbhac’ uwile, Int’ziman’ ukwenzeka, Ben 10, Bathin’ abantu, Black Friday, and Tshomi were among the horses who competed in the races at Bhomela.

As a result of Wakrazulwa’s victory and Tshomi’s fourth-place finish in another race, Monde Sofuthe of Bholothwa went home pleased. Despite the absence of the well-known horses that often attend Dutywa’s horse races, Sofuthe cheerfully accepted the outcomes of the races in which his horses competed.

“Yes, today is my day. However, there’s more to horse racing than just winning. Running is what matters most for our horses. The horse needs to always be in top shape; it’s like football,” said Sofuthe.

The love for horses runs deep in the Bholothwa tournament, despite the fact that there is a lack of cooperation between the horse racing associations, which has negatively impacted the horse racing sport.

“A lot has been done. We have been involved with horse racing for some time. We used to be football fans, but now we are here. We were introduced by Bhut’ Khanyiso. We became really interested since we always supported him.

“Bhut’ Khanyiso’s old man loved horses. He followed in his footsteps. We enjoy horse racing a lot although some issues have been raised. Eventually, there must be a race. It’s not pleasant because of the issues that have arisen. What matters is that we race,” Sofuthe added.