Equestrian/World Endurance Championship: Sultan urges Terengganu to ride into new horizon

10 Aug 2006


SULTAN of Terengganu Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin wants the State to be equated with endurance horse riding, just like how Malaysia is associated with badminton.

"It is not impossible as Datuk Awang Kamaruddin carved his name when he achieved World No 1 status for endurance riders in 2001," said Sultan Mizan.

The Sultan was speaking to reporters before taking a ride on one of the tracks prepared for the Federation Equestrian International (FEI) 2008 World Endurance Championship.

The two-day championship, held once every four years, is slated for Aug 1-2, 2008 at the Terengganu International Endurance Park in Lembah Bidong.

About 200 riders and 700 volunteers are expected to be involved in the championship.

The Sultan also dismissed claims that the sport was targeted to an elite group and cited Awang as an example.

Awang started off as a stable-boy before becoming a professional horse-rider.

"Horse-riding is a bit like golf in the sense that most of the professionals were caddies.

"Once they succeeded, they received sponsorship from companies and individuals," he said.

The Sultan admitted however that owning and maintaining a horse was costly, but it should not discourage anyone from taking up the sport.

"We have a few equestrian clubs here and all the people need to do is to become a member."

ENGLAND HONOURS FOR ENDURANCE RIDER

RIDING
An Island rider and her ten-year-old thoroughbred mare are off to Scotland this weekend to represent England in an endurance riding event.
Karen Whittington, 50, of Chale, and her horse Malthouse Maiden Ray ? stable name Mary ? will be taking part in the Home International and Celtic Challenge near Kelso.
The competition is being held as part of the 2006 Scottish Championship.
The duo have enjoyed a highly successful year so far, gaining grade one and grade two awards at a two-day endurance event in North Norfolk last month, and came second when representing the South East in an inter-region 50km race in Ludlow.
Now, she and Mary will pit their wits against talented riders and horses from across the home nations in a two-day, 80km event.
She said: "I had put my name down a couple of times in the hope I would be selected and now I have been picked, I am really happy and excited about taking part.
"To be chosen to ride in Scotland when we are from the Island is for me a great achievement, especially considering Mary is a thoroughbred and not the preferred choice as an endurance horse.
"It has been an amazing year for us and this has topped it off brilliantly."
11 August 2006

Bahrain Riders gear up for world challenge

he Bahrain Royal endurance team is stepping up preparations to participate in the World Endurance Horse-Riding Championship which will be held later this month in Germany. Bahrain Royal Endurance and Equestrian Federation (Breef) president and team leader Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa assured that the members are gearing up for the most important tournament in the sport's calendar.

Shaikh Nasser said that the national team participated in four events and achieved excellent results, and the team is now set for the world championship which will be over 160km.

The Breef president said that the team will try to achieve good results as they participate for the second time in the world class event, after the first one which was held last January in Dubai.

The names of the squad was also announced and they included Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Shaikh Daij bin Salman Al Khalifa, Shaikh Salman bin Sager Al Khalifa, Yousif Taher, Hamad Al Meraisi and Khalid Al Ruwaie.

Shaikh Nasser also appreciated the support of His Majesty King Hamad for the sport.

Many wins for keen endurance rider

Thursday, 3 August 2006

THIRTEEN-year-old Corey Lunt and his 11 year old Arabian gelding, Assiff were proving to be a winning partnership on the endurance scene after notching up another first place at the Annual Wickepin Endurance ride last weekend.

The event consisted of three components, a 20 km and 40 km non-competitive training ride and an 80 km competitive ride.

Organisers Phillip Martin and Vanessa Crispe of Trehaven Merinos marked a course that traversed gravel roads and farming properties softened by rain the day prior to the event.

Unfortunately numbers were down this year, which was disappointing. This however, did not detract from the event, which will be well remembered for the wonderful hospitality that the members of the Ten Mile Tennis Club provided.

Fourteen horse and rider combinations took part in the 40 km ride and nine riders commenced the 20 km ride with Tim Wiesse of Narrogin and Lisa, Caleb and Danelle Murray of Tincurrin successfully completing.

Twentynine riders began the 80 km event with Corey not only coming first in the junior section and receiving the best conditioned junior horse but also recording the fastest overall time on the day, completing the course in five hours and 23 minutes.

WFI, Narrogin Sports Arena and Kel's Tyres of Narrogin sponsored the junior trophies.

Corey and Assiff began their endurance career together 12 months ago and to date have completed nine out of 11 rides, been awarded six first junior placings, one second placing, six best conditioned junior horse awards, and totalled over 800 successful kilometres.

Their biggest achievement together this year has been to successfully complete a 100 mile (160 kms) ride, the first for both horse and rider.

These 100 mile rides are particularly taxing as the riders commence at midnight by torchlight. They continue riding during the next day, taking only four breaks, no longer than one hour throughout the ride.

The horses must pass strict veterinary controls between legs in order to continue.

Corey and Assiff completed this course in a total riding time of 19 hours and 44 minutes being one of only six out of 14 starters to complete the ride.

They went on to win the junior section and best conditioned junior horse.

Completing this event qualified them for the Tom Quilty Gold Cup National event, which will be held in WA next year.

With over half the 2006 endurance season completed, Corey and Assiff are aiming to continue their winning form in the second half of the season and to complete the State Championship 100 mile event in September.

Kiwi contingent eyes World Games success

August 4
The New Zealand team for WEG comprises six eventers, five endurance horses, one show jumper, and a vaulter. The cost of sending horses to Europe from New Zealand is so prohibitive that riders are not selected unless they are deemed competitive. As a result, a number of riders base themselves overseas to gain experience and measure themselves against international competition.

Endurance:

Having won team gold in Dubai in 1998 when the horses' costs were met by the organizers, endurance has been fired with determination to compete internationally ever since, and not just across the Tasman in Australia, where the Tom Quilty Ride is the gold standard.

Paulette Stannard battled to fund her horse, Zephyr, to The Hague in 1994, to compete as an individual, the first New Zealand-based Kiwi to have competed outside of Australasia. She entered the stadium in bronze medal position, but was vetted out, having twice been sent the wrong way, and covering extra distance as a result.

Zephyr was fine next morning, and bought by an American family who invited Paulette to go with the horse and settle him in. Following her showing at The Hague, Paulette was sure it was worth having a WEG team in the future, convinced the horses were up to it.

The other Kiwi competitor at WEG that year was Australian based Howard Harris, who is a member of this year's team. At 60 years old, he is vastly experienced, having competed internationally since 1988. His horse, Harmere Turfan, a 12-year-old old home-bred Arabian gelding, placed second in the Tom Quilty Ride earlier this year. Howard and his horse traveled to Christchurch in the South Island to meet up with the rest of the team before flying out to Germany on July 24.

Brian Tiffen, a 47-year-old farmer from Fairlie in the South Island, who was the best performing Kiwi in the extremely wet weather at Jerez four years ago, will be hoping for better conditions at Aachen this year. Tiffen, who started endurance riding as a teenager, was a member of the NZ team at the endurance world championships in Dubai last year on his team horse Sonny, a 13-year-old home-bred Anglo-Arab.

Shane Dougan, a 55-year-old farmer from Eketahuna in the North Island, played polo-crosse prior to taking up endurance. He holds the NZ record over 160 kilometres, riding his 10-year-old Arabian stallion Vigar Riffal, on which he was a member of the winning Trans-Tasman team in Australia last year.

Philip Graham, a 51-year-old farmer from Cheviot in the South Island, was also a member of the same Trans-Tasman. His 11-year-old Anglo-Arab gelding, Wolfgang Amadeus, is a consistent performer, bred by the late Leo Nisbett.

The rookie in the team is 20-year-old Kylie Avery, from Marlborough, who has been competing in open company for three years. She was a member of the 2004 NZ Trans-Tasman team, and was runner-up for the 2006 Horse and Rider of the Year. Her horse, Silands Jasark, a nine-year-old part-Arab stallion, was also bred by Leo Nisbett.
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Tevis: Barbara White goes for # 26!

After 27 100-mile rides, Scotts Valley woman on her way to becoming Tevis Cup nobility -
By JULIE JAG - Sentinel Staff Writer - August 3, 2006

According to legend, White spent years helping her mother complete several editions of the Tevis Cup ? a 100-mile trek considered the granddaddy of endurance horse racing. Yet White didn't show any interest in riding in the race herself until 1967, when she heard a rumor that Baroness Margit Bessenyey, the granddaughter of Copper King Marcus Daly, would be among the entrants. As the story goes, White, then 19, was wooed by the chance to ride with nobility and signed up.

In the Tevis' 52-year history, only five riders have surpassed the 20 completion mark. Behind White and Hall is Julie Suhr of Scotts Valley ? White's mother and an endurance riding legend in her own right ? with 22.

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Uncommon poise in the saddle

Months after graduating high school, Duncan looks to shine on at Tevis Cup

By: Todd Mordhorst, Journal Sports Editor
Tuesday, August 1, 2006 8:35 AM PDT

photo: Akim AGinsky/Auburn Journal Tosha Duncan will again be atop Rambo, a full-bred Arabian, at Saturday's Tevis Cup. A Bear River High grad who will study journalism this fall at the University of Nevada, the 18-year-old rode the horse to victory at a race outside Nevada City earlier this year.

Chris Martin's full-bred Arabian horse hasn't been on the race track in more than eight years. But at the conclusion of the Wild West Ride in May, the horse must have felt like he was on the oval again.

Tosha Duncan was in the saddle, making sure Rambo didn't burn out too early. She paced the horse to victory in the three-day, 150-mile ride at Skillman Flat, outside of Nevada City. The finish also gave the 18-year-old Duncan a ticket to Saturday's Tevis Cup endurance ride. She needed 300 miles in competition to qualify for the 100-mile ride from Truckee to Auburn.

"I made the promise to her that if she wanted to get the mileage, put in the effort, that she could ride Tevis and that's where we're at," said Martin, who owns a ranch in Penn Valley.

Tevis Cup is the centerpiece of a hectic summer for Duncan, who graduated from Bear River High in June. She's preparing to head off to the University of Nevada in the fall, where she plans to study journalism.

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