Morocco: Shaikh Nasser Praises Royal Directives to Hold 2nd Endurance Race in Morocco

BNA.bh

17/11/2012

Rabat, Nov. 17. (BNA) – Upon directives from His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa to activate joint cooperation with Morocco in the sports field, in general, and the equestrian one, in particular, and follow-up of the Chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sport, President of the Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) and captain of the Royal Equestrian and Endurance Team Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa and President of the Bahrain Royal Equestrian and Endurance Federation (BREEF) Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa, preparations are in full swing to hold, on November 20, the second Bahrain and Morocco Endurance Championship, the largest of its kind in north Africa.

The race will be open for all riders and will cover a distance of 120 kms, with qualifying races of 80 and 40 kms, in accordance with the royal instructions.

An elite of riders from the Royal Endurance Team, led by Shaikh Nasser and Shaikh Khalid, Germany, Belgium, France, Spain, Morocco and Tunisia will be participating in the event.

On the occasion, Captain of the Royal Team Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad said that holding the second edition of the race in Morocco reflects the values of sincere cooperation bonding the two sisterly kingdoms, in line with the sound directives of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and his brother King Mohammed VI.

The move aims to promote the endurance sport in North Africa, he added, noting that holding it in Morocco will increase the number of its fans there.

Shaikh Nasser expressed delight at implementing the Royal directives to turn the race into an international one so as to increase the number of participant riders and pave the way for Bahraini riders to strengthen ties with their counterparts in North Africa and other countries and exchange expertise with them.

He also affirmed that the race will benefit Bahraini and Moroccan riders and enrich their experience, wishing all riders every success.

On his part, BREEF President Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad said that HM the King's directives to hold the race in Morocco will consolidate bilateral cooperation and will spread the sport in Morocco and other North African countries.

He added that BREEF and endurance officials in Morocco have taken all the necessary procedures in order to ensure the success of the race and achieve its set goals, pledging that members of the Royal team are keen to achieve the best results during the race and take advantage of it to prepare for the coming races.

In the same context, Dr. Khalid Ahmed asserted that all success requirements are already in place, adding that the race will be a highly-distinguished one, given the number of experienced riders taking part in it.

On his part, Media Office and Information Centre Director and Head of the Media Committee Tawfiq Al-Salhi said that BREEF is keen to implement the directives of Shaikh Nasser and Shaikh Khalid to enhance relations between Bahraini riders and others riders from Morocco and other countries and enhance sports cooperation, pledging that media coverage will be thorough, in line with the royal directives.

WHQ

Great Britain: New Development Squad Chef appointed

Endurancegb.co.uk

06 November 2012

Emma Miller, Chair of international is delighted to report that a new Chef for the World Class Development Squad has been appointed. Mary Stubbs has been offered the role and she has accepted.

Mary will be starting her role next week by attending the training weekend at Bury Farm and Emma is sure they all will benefit from her experience and leadership.

Welfare Group: FEI 'On the Right Track' in Addressing Welfare Issues

Thehorse.com - Full Article

By Christa Lesté-Lasserre • Nov 09, 2012 • Article #30844

The Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) is on the right track in addressing key welfare issues in equine sport in a context of growing public concern for animal well-being and an evolving global climate, according to the chief executive of an international horse welfare association.

Speaking at the FEI annual General Assembly Nov. 8 in Istanbul, Turkey, Roly Owers, MRCVS, of World Horse Welfare (WHW) praised the FEI's welfare efforts in an evolving world which has become more critical, in part because of social media.

"Clearly how horses are treated, and how they're perceived to be treated, matters to the public," Owers said. "It is obviously right that the public should care about horse welfare in sport, but ... in this social media age, the voice of vocal minorities can damage the reputation of the sport." As examples he cited the online "storms" surrounding the "blood rule" issue and debates about nose bands.

"And you all know that the animal rights group PETA is now suing the owners and trainer of Totilas in Germany," he added. "Whatever we feel about the merits of this case, this is a sign of the times. And there will be more to come..."

Read more here:
http://www.thehorse.com/articles/30844/welfare-group-fei-on-the-right-track-in-addressing-welfare-issues?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=welfare-industry&utm_campaign=11-15-2012

FEI Horses Must Be Microchipped

KER.equinews.com

By Kentucky Equine Research Staff · November 7, 2012

The FEI General Assembly resulted in a change in veterinary regulations such that all horses to be newly registered with the FEI must be microchipped. The new regulation will go into effect on January 1, 2013. The microchip must be compatible with ISO 11784 and ISO 11785, and all microchip information must be entered in the horse's passport and reported to the USEF.

Microchip numbers consist of 15 digits of which the first three identify the manufacturer or country code and the remaining numbers are unique to each horse. A microchip carries the identifier that will be associated with a specific horse from the date of implant until the animal's death.

Owners should check with a veterinarian to schedule microchipping for their horses. The USEF recommends that horses be scanned for the presence of a microchip before a new chip is implanted, especially in the case of horses that have had more than one owner.

For questions regarding the new regulation, e-mail kball@usef.org.

UAE: Al Merri wins opening ride of endurance season

Gulfnews.com

Finishes ahead of Al Owais and Al Fares in 120km event in Dubai
Staff Report
Published: November 15, 2012

Dubai: Abdullah Ganem Al Merri survived testing conditions to win the His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Endurance Cup, the opening ride of the 2012-2013 UAE Endurance season at Dubai International Endurance City on Thursday.

The 160km three-star horseride was attended by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. Also present was Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance, a number of Shaikhs and horse owners.

Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, was among the 200 participants before he pulled out in the second of four loops.

Riding the Nad Al Sheba Stables-owned Arabian Amooh, Al Merri won in a time of 4hrs 17min 18sec.

Ganem Saeed Salem Al Owais was second in 4:17.15 seconds, while Mohammad Saeed Mohammad Al Fares clocked 4:17.48 for third place. Ahmad Yousuf Al Beloushi was fourth and Safa Endurance Stables’ Saeed Ahmad Al Katbi fifth.

The 120km race featured four loops, the first and second being 40km each, while the third and fourth were 20km apiece.

Al Merri said he knew he had to stay consistent throughout the ride to have a chance of winning.

“I had a good horse and I knew what to expect this time and was prepared for a tight competition,” he said. “But nothing could have prepared me for the second loop, which was very tough because of the blowing sand and the heat.

“I wish to thank His Highness Shaikh Mohammad and Shaikh Hamdan for supporting me and helping me learn more and more about endurance horses. I’m very happy to win this opening ride and I hope I can continue and have a good season.”

Mohammad Al Adhab, Deputy General Manager of Dubai Equestrian Club, presented the top three riders with their prizes.

FEI General Assembly 2012

8 November 2012

The FEI General Assembly 2012 took place in Istanbul, Turkey 5-8 November in the presence of 252 delegates. One hundred and four National Federations – 80 in person and 24 by proxy – took part in the Assembly’s proceedings.

The General Assembly is the yearly meeting of the National Federations and is the supreme authority of the FEI. Elections are held at the Assembly and decisions are made with regard to issues such as changes to FEI Statutes, approvals of long-term strategies and FEI budgets. 
 
All decisions are taken by vote and each National Federation has a right to cast a vote. If for any reason a National Federation is unable to attend they may be represented by another National Federation, however one National Federation may not represent more than two other Federations at a General Assembly.

Essentially, the purpose of the General Assembly is to give the National Federations an opportunity to vote on important Equestrian issues. The Assembly will govern the overall direction, development and management of the FEI’s disciplines throughout the world for the coming year.

ENDURANCE

The FEI Rules Endurance for Endurance Events were completely reviewed in 2012 and the new 8th edition which will come into effect on 1 January 2013 for the next four years includes 14 major changes which reflect the ongoing development of the discipline. The main changes concern:

• The minimum number of vet gates introduced at lower distance events and confirmation of a minimum distance for the final phase;

• Introduction of an FEI appointed course designer for Championships;

• Field of play now identified and the notion of allowed access defined;

• Further clarification on minimum dress code;

• Novice qualification now extended to include a free speed competition and a minimum of four other events;

• Minimum rest periods for horses extended to include national events and also the number of rest days amended to allow for weekend events on either a Saturday or Sunday;

• Creation of an elite status for J/YR and senior athletes allowing such elite athletes to ‘fast track’ certain parts of Championship qualification;

• Invitations to CEIOs and Championships now reduced to a maximum of five athletes and seven horses;

• At CEIOs and Championships, results from all combinations from the same nation are available to that nation to establish the team score (best three to count - only three medals to be awarded).

• At CEI 1*, 2* and 3* events, athletes may present up to two horses at the first inspection and declare their horse of choice immediately after the horse(s) passes the inspection;

• The present voting system for lameness assessment has been extended to include metabolic assessment that can result in the removal of a horse from the competition, failing to qualify for the next phase;

• New ‘Best Condition’ rules introduced to better reflect the degree and extent of assessment of each horse.

• Changes to the number and star level of FEI officials at lower level event to assist organisers with the costs of hosting an event.

• FEI involvement when necessary regarding appointment of officials at CEIs to ensure adequate rotation and address potential conflicts of interest.

The Rules will be available on the FEI website on THIS PAGE.

A summary of the main decisions taken by the Assembly is available HERE.

France: Behind the scenes at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy

JEMFEIAlltech2014-normandie.fr

5 November 2012

« The backstage boss » is probably the best way to describe Martine Nemecek’s job. She is in fact the competition venue director; a role she has held since September 2012.
Her ambition? “That everyone talks as little as possible about the organisational side of the event. During the 15 days of competition, the focus should be on the competitors’ sporting exploits and the event’s overall atmosphere: that will mean that we have done our job properly.”

Up until now, the Normandie 2014 Organising Committee has had a top-down approach when it comes to each sector of activity; each department working on its own portfolio and with its own deadlines: layout, ticketing, sports, logistics, activities and entertainment…

With less than two years to go before the event, the time has come to switch from a “functional organisation” to a more horizontal, operational approach. “All the departments obviously depend upon each other”, explains Martine Nemecek. They are all going to be the supplier and/or client of the other e.g. the transport manager is going to get transport requests from the sports department, for the competitors and officials, and from the commercial department for our partners…My job is to check that there isn’t any pointless overlapping of resources or that nothing is overlooked. To give you another example: has the event activities manager realised that it’s up to the technology department to supply the giant screens? And that she needs to avoid ordering them directly from the suppliers ?...” The list of these so-called “cross-over areas” has been drawn up after a lot of painstaking work…or to be more accurate, thanks to careful analysis. In short, 2,500 guidelines that are constantly being changed and adapted (needs are fine-tuned, new requirements arise, othersare no longer necessary).

The venue management team of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games ™ 2014 in Normandy will also define an organisation model for the different competition venues. “We need to have homogeneous organisation and the same level of service everywhere. We’re not only talking about the competition venues themselves, but about the train stations, the support bases for the horses prior to arrival at the stables, the “village” for the grooms…” About 750 different procedures will cover all these different areas of responsibility.“Who exactly does what, and in which circumstances?”

During the event, Martine Nemecek will be at the helm of the MOC, the Main Operations Centre, masterminding the overall organisation, deciding what needs to be changed and when, as well as the best way of intervening if anything goes wrong. You could say it’s the Games’ “HQ”!

Martine Nemecek’s profile: Former operations director for the Rugby World Cup in 2007 and for the World Athletics Championships in 2003, Martine Nemecek is highly experienced when it comes to major international sporting events. She joined the Organising Committee as competition venue director in September 2012.