World Endurance Championship - USA

The USEF will send 9 horse/rider combinations to Dubai:

Official WEC Squad:

Carol Giles - SAR Tiki Stranger
Beverly Gray - Regalidon aka Paladin
Becky Harris - GA Tyfe Mynte
Michele Roush, DVM - PR Tallymark
Meg Sleeper, DVM - Shyrocco Troilus
Dennis Summers - SHA Ebony Rose


Reserve list:

Carolyn Hock - GT Sando
Joyce Sousa - LV Integrity
Susan Summers - Raymond Blur

World Endurance Championship - Japanese Federation

Seiichi Hasumi - SMR FAYETTE DE CAMEO
Kanako Hayashi - DJB WERSUS
Mitsuko Masui - FAX DE SKY

Chef D'Equipe: Masafumi Tanaka

Team Vet: Manabu Kubota

New Zealand - Equestrian: Desert raiders

26.12.04
by PAUL LEWIS

There was a movie this year, Hidalgo, which told the story of a man and his horse competing in the centuries-old long-distance horse race, the Ocean of Fire, an epic contest across burning Arabian sands in 1890 with both horses and riders at risk. This was a 3000-mile survival race for a prize of riches.

Now cut to present-day Owhango, near Taumaranui, a 20-year-old farmer, Mark Tylee, and his horse Jamahl. Like Hidalgo's supposed true-life hero, Frank T. Hopkins (played by Viggo Mortensen of The Lord of the Rings fame), Tylee is an accomplished rider.

He speaks with the simplicity and sincerity of a New Zealand farmer - not unlike the "howdy all, don't hurt my horse" style of the iron-jawed Hopkins in the movie. And Tylee and Jamahl will take on the world's best as part of a New Zealand endurance riding team in a gruelling world championship in the heat of the United Arab Emirates deserts on January 27.

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Ovando horse, rider suffer setback while training in Florida

By DARYL GADBOW of the Missoulian

Ovando rancher Suzanne Hayes and Quincy, her palomino gelding, have had a setback while training in Florida for the World Endurance Championship horse race scheduled for Jan. 27 in Dubai of the United Arab Emirates.

Hayes and Quincy - whose official name is actually Tezero's Gold - traveled to Florida in late November as part of the nine horse/rider United States team training for the grueling 100-mile race in the Dubai desert.

Six of the teams will be selected to represent the United States in the race. Three teams will be alternates. Hayes and Quincy went into training in Florida ranked among the top six horse/rider tandems.


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Stories of love line champion rider's trail

Published: December 24, 2004

By Dallas Finn

The Bulletin

If it hadn't been for falling in love with Ronald Sproat, the man who would become her husband, Carol Giles wouldn't have met Stranger, a bay Arabian gelding.

If it hadn't been for Giles' lifelong love of horses, Stranger might have ended up at the slaughterhouse.

And if it hadn't been for the healing love she showered on Stranger, the Prineville duo might not be headed next month to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates.

Giles, 48, and Stranger, 12, leave Jan. 15 for Dubai, where they'll compete as members of the United States Endurance Equestrian Team in the 100-mile World Cup Endurance Championships, to be held Jan. 26-27.


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FEI WORLD ENDURANCE CHAMPIONSHIP, DUBAI (UAE), 26 ? 27 JANUARY 2005

FEI WORLD ENDURANCE CHAMPIONSHIP, DUBAI (UAE), 26 ? 27 JANUARY 2005

The Organising Committee of the World Endurance Championships, which are
taking place next month in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, have confirmed
that they have received definite entries for 188 horses from 41 nations.

The horses are all due to start arriving in Dubai around 8 January allowing
them time to acclimatise ahead of the competition which takes place on 26
and 27 January 2005.

At the final trial, which took place in Dubai last weekend held at the state
of the art purpose built ? complete with a five-star hotel ? Dubai Endurance
Village, the Organising Committee and the FEI confirmed that everything had
worked perfectly.

The Village now looks forward to welcoming the expected 800 riders, crew
members, team vets, team farriers, team doctors, horse owners and officials
who will take part in what is likely to be the biggest Equestrian World
Championship ever.

Full details of the riders and horses taking part will be published on the
FEI web site in early January after the Christmas and New Year holidays.

Media representative wishing to cover the event, should get in touch with
the respective National Federations, which all the relevant information for
the press has been sent to.

World Endurance Championship: French squad

World Endurance Championship: France announces squad members -

Barbara Lissarague.....Georgat
Emile Lambert...........Gourbi
Simon Bellot..............Douar
Raphael Muller..........Al Koum
Philippe Tomas..........Electra
Sunny Demedy...........Haoussa Larzac

Chef d'équipe : Pierre Cazes

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News from http://www.endurance-belgium.com/ :

Pierre Cazes présente sa meilleure équipe de chevaux en pleine force de l'age. La France a investi beaucoup de temps dans la préparation de son équipe, avec deux voyages de reconnaissance sur place et la mise en place d'une structure d'accueil et de support de son équipe sur place.
On ne retrouve dans cette équipe que des gagnants : Georgat (Montcuq), Gourbi(La Baule), Douar(Florac), Electra(Compiègne), Al Koum(Rambouillet), Haoussa Larzac(Bonifacio).
Tous les cavaliers ainsi que le chef d'équipe voyageront avec les chevaux et seront à pied d'oeuvre dès le début de l'acclimatationd es chevaux le 9 janvier à Dubai.
Pierre Cazes enters his best selected team, with horses who all won at least one race in France. France invested a lot of time in preparing the event : two trips in Dubai, the set up of a task force staffed with french expatriates...
The horses : Georgat (mare, winner of Montcuq 2x100); Gourbi (gelding, winner of La Baule 160 and Compiegne 148), Douar (gelding, winner of Florac); Electra (mare, winner of Compiègne 120 and topten at Newmarket 160), Al Koum (winner Rambouillet 130 and 3rd at Newmarket 160), Haoussa Larzac (bronze at Punchestown and winner at Bonifacio 140)