The winners of equestrian competitions were determined in the Mezen district

The winners of the horse races were determined in the Mezen district. Horse owners from the Vologda, Moscow, Leningrad, Kursk, and Ryazan regions took part in the competition.

Following two days of testing, the absolute champion of the competition was a stallion named Replacement, riding under the control of Ivan Shiroky. The Arabian horse, ridden by Oleg Shiroky, was recognized as the champion among working horses.

The horses are kept on the gene pool and breeding farm of the fishing collective farm “Sever”, which is the largest agricultural enterprise for breeding “mezenkas”: there are more than 110 heads here, with a total population in Russia of about 500 animals.

During the competition, seven more sets of awards were awarded in various types of tests: trot under saddle at a distance of 2 km and trot in harness without load at 20 km, walk at a distance of 2 km with a load of 500 kg and trot at 15 km with a load of 400 kg, step on virgin snow without a load for 300 meters, test of triplets, traction endurance with a load of 2 tons for the maximum distance.

Among the Mezen breed mares, Aprilka took first place, and Taibola took second place. These animals belong to the Ostrov stud farm. Third place was awarded to the mare Smuglyanka, whose owner is the Mezenska Horse Club.

Summing up the results of the competition, Minister of Agriculture and Trade of the Arkhangelsk Region Irina Bazhanova noted that the event once again confirmed the high breeding value of Mezen breed horses, which are included in the register of breeding animals of the Russian Ministry of Agriculture.

“To preserve the unique gene pool in Pomorie, a lot of painstaking work is being done both by specialists from the selection center and by employees of agricultural enterprises in the region,” said the head of the department. – Every year, to preserve the breed, regional enterprises are allocated state support funds: in 2024, for example, more than 3.7 million rubles. We hope that thanks to an integrated approach to working with “mezenka”, its popularity will grow not only in Pomorie, but also in other regions of Russia.