Hua Tian grew up in Hong Kong, before moving to the UK to study at Eton College. A keen horse rider, by the age of 18 Hua Tian had qualified for the Beijing Olympics, becoming China’s first eventing rider to formally compete at the Olympics. Deciding that he wanted to ride professionally, Tian gave up a place to study aeronautical engineering at university and instead dedicated himself to training in eventing. During the 2012 Olympic Games, Tian acted as VisitBritain’s official ambassador and global honorary guardian of the World Horse Welfare. In 2016, he competed in the eventing at the Rio Olympics representing China and finished in 8th place, which was a significant breakthrough for a Chinese equestrian sportsperson in the Olympics. In August 2018, Tian won a bronze medal at the Jakarta Asian Games 2018.