Australia: Endurance riders qualify for 2008 WEC

Efanational.com

A report on the Upper Murray Challenge

by Linda Tanian, Monday, 14 April 2008

Brook Sample and Meg Wade are the first riders from Australia to qualify for the 2008 Endurance World Championships to be held in Malaysia in November.

The first of three FEI rides schedule for Victoria this year was conducted on the weekend of 05 - 06 April at Walwa near the NSW border. The CEI 2 * 80km event was run on Saturday with the main event, the CEI 3* 160km event, run on Sunday.

Both events were small in number but the competition was strong, particularly in the 3* event. This was one of the qualifying rides for the World Championships for Endurance, which are to be held in Malaysia in November 2008. The qualification criteria for this event has been strengthened ahead of concerns about the ride being run in a tropical climate. Rider and horse combinations must successfully complete 2 x 160km events in a time of less than 13 hours and 20 minutes in the 24 months preceding the World Championships with one of those completions in the twelve month period prior to the event.

EI has affected, as it has for all horse sports, the preparations of combinations who are wanting to be considered for selection for the World Championships.

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