Naadam festival in Inner Mongolia draws over 200,000 visitors

(ECNS) -- More than 200,000 visitors attended the opening of the 2026 Hinggan League Naadam festival on Saturday on the Wulanmaodu pasture in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Naadam, meaning “games” or “entertainment” in Mongolian, is a traditional festival featuring sports and cultural performances. Highlights included 1,000 performers dancing the Andai, 500 Mongolian horses galloping across the venue and 100 musicians playing the morin khuur, or horse head fiddle.

This year’s event recruited performers, competitors and volunteers from the public, with participants ranging in age from 4½ to 89. 

Traditional competitions such as horse racing, wrestling and archery are being held alongside more than 30 cultural and leisure activities, turning the grassland into a mass celebration of Mongolian heritage.

(By Helen Mo, intern Yang Hongran)