TEHRAN – Bojnurd, the capital of North Khorasan province, played host to a traditional equestrian competition on Friday.

A total of 80 Turkmen horses entered the autumn competition, the deputy provincial tourism chief has said.

Such events aim at activating existing horse industry capabilities in the region to boost tourism and sustainable development, Abolfazl Esmaeili explained on Saturday.

The Turkmen horse is noted for endurance, bravery, smartness, and slender body. Many locals believe that breeding such horses is one of the toughest jobs in the world.

Such animals are dominantly found in the pasturelands of Turkmen Sahra, a region sandwiched between Iran and Turkmenistan.

Iran and Turkmenistan seek to put forward the Turkmen horses and their safeguarding practices as a candidate for inclusion in the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Local travel insiders believe that traveling in North Khorasan is gaining momentum by degrees, creating lucrative opportunities for the tourism industry.

According to Lonely Planet, most foreign tourists pass straight through North Khorasan in transit between Mashhad and Gorgan, but if you have time to explore, it’s worth diverting south from the capital, Bojnurd, towards Esfarayen, famed for its wrestling tournaments, the remarkable citadel of Belqays and the partly preserved stepped village of Roein some 20km north.

ABU/AM