Abu Dhabi Endurance Festival begins

Khaleejtimes.com - Full Article

28 March 2013

ABU DHABI — Three endurance rides will be held as part of the inaugural two-day Abu Dhabi Endurance Festival starting from Thursday at the Emirates International Endurance Village in Al Wathba, Abu Dhabi with some of the top riders participating.
Sultan Saif Al Nuaimi, director general of Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club (ADEC) told a Press conference at the Eastern Mangroves Hotel on Tuesday evening, “This is the first time such a festival of rides is being held in Abu Dhabi. We start off with a 140-km Three-star Open endurance ride on Thursday which will be the feature event.”

Friday, March 29 we will be staging two rides, one a 120-km national ride for private owners and the second a national ride for ladies over a distance of 100 kms,” he said.

“Around 140 riders are expected to be starting in Thursday’s 140 km-ride which will be held in five stages of 35 kms, 34 kms, 31 kms, 24 kms and 16 kms,” said Al Nuaimi.

In the ladies ride on Friday the participants are required to cover the 100 kms divided into four stages of 33 kms , 27 kms, 24 kms and 16 kms,” he said.

The rides are being held under the patronage of Shaikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs...

Read more here:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/sport/inside_sport.asp?xfile=/data/horseracing/2013/March/horseracing_March7.xml§ion=horseracing

Qatar: Big show: Aiming high

ThePeninsularaQatar.com - Full Article

28 March 2013
By Isabel Ovalle

Qatar is currently hosting the first international equestrian competition to be held in the Middle East and Asia. The venue is Al Shaqab, which boasts 980,000 square metres of world-class facilities inside Qatar Foundation’s Education City.
The organisers expect 10,000 spectators to attend over the four days of the event, with special attendance by members of the ruling family and other guests of honour from the GCC states.

CHI (Concours Hippique International — International Equestrian Competition) is the official title given by the FEI (International Equestrian Federation) to international equestrian competitions with three or more equine disciplines, like the one taking place in Doha.

“Many prestigious equestrian events have taken place in the Gulf countries; however, this combination of disciplines hasn’t been done before,” said Dr Andras Tatar, Venue Director at Al Shaqab.

The event, which began yesterday, will conclude on March 30 with participation by the best riders in the FEI ranking.
The city will host at least three more events like this, which will serve as tests for Doha and Al Shaqab, which ultimately aims to host the World Equestrian Games in 2022.

Al Shaqab wants to use the opportunity to the full.

“We are about to develop the facility to be multifunctional. We have control rooms to run three different disciplines at the same time, with the outdoor area destined for showjumping and the indoor area for dressage,” said Dr Tatar, who has been working at Al Shaqab for over five years.

Al Shaqab has three major areas, and a fourth one will be the arena and events area. The others are a zone dedicated to breeding and one for endurance, both focusing on Arabian horses, and the riding academy. The institution is developing programmes to build dressage teams and at present has competing teams only in endurance. The academy has 1,156 members — half of them expatriates of various nationalities and the rest Qataris, said the venue director...

Read more here:
http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/cover-plus/230894-big-show-aiming-high.html

Belgium: Mont Le Soie National and International Races Cancelled

Endurance-belgium.com

27 March 2013

[google translate]

The association PROMO ENDURANCE HORSE, organizing competitions endurance Mont-le-Soie (Vielsalm) cancels national and international competitions that were to take place this Saturday 04 and Sunday, May 5th next.

In September 2012, Mont-le-Soie had served as the Junior European Championships and the World Veterans and this year was the 13th edition of the appointment of high level. There will unfortunately probably nothing.

Involved, due to weather extremely rough this winter that many horses are stationed in Belgium and neighboring regions will not be ready for early May.

In addition, another international contest of endurance in Rambouillet (France, 300 kms from Mont-le-Soie) came intercalate into the schedule the same dates so that no rider will not run into hexagonal Ardennes .

Knowing that to balance the budget of Mont-le-Soie, it takes 100 horses minimum international events, Special Equestrian Endurance has always worked far more by passion than by reason prefer this time reverse priorities and think accounting terms.

Still another date is being considered for Mont-le-Soie but at the end of the season.

International Endurance Competition to take place in Windsor Great Park, May 2013

Endurancegb.co.uk

19th March 2013

On Friday 10th May up to 60 riders will participate in the newly introduced Royal Windsor Endurance CEI 2* taking place in Windsor Great Park. This new competition is in association with and presented by Royal Windsor Horse Show (8 – 12 May 2013).

Countries throughout the world have been invited to put forward competitors and initial indications are that Great Britain, Oman, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and France will compete. Its route will be over 120km in Windsor Great Park consisting of 4 loops of differing distances.

Continuing a tradition of association with international endurance competition, this event is generously supported by The Kingdom of Bahrain, who recently sponsored the FEI 2011 European Open Endurance Horseride Championship in Florac, France.

Technical Delegate, John Robertson, a member of the FEI Endurance Committee, a 4* endurance judge, and Technical Delegate and the Technical Advisor for the 2012 World Championships, has confirmed that the course offers some excellent riding in a beautiful landscape with a good, varied terrain.

Visitors may watch the event free of charge as they follow its route through the Great Park.

Royal Windsor Horse Show, which celebrates its 70th anniversary this year, takes place in the private grounds of Windsor Castle from Wednesday 8th to Sunday 12th May. It is host to the Land Rover International Carriage Driving Competition as well as over 120 showing classes and a great variety of jumping and dressage classes. With over 3000 entries for the Show the event is one of the highlights of the English equestrian calendar.

Royal Windsor Horse Show box office is now open and tickets can be purchased online at www.rwhs.co.uk or by telephone from 0844 581 4960. For further information please contact Tanya Bicknell or Jo Peck on tanyab@hpower.co.uk or Jo.peck@hpower.co.uk 01753 847900

Great Britain: ew Endurance Rider Plans Epic Fundraiser From the Bay to Hay

Endurancegb.co.uk - Full Article

20 March 2013

Vika Engel plans to celebrate her 15th birthday on May 26 by setting out with her pony Sparkle on an epic ride. She aims to travel 100 miles over six days, from the sandy beach at Borth on the Welsh coast, right across the mountains, forests and moorlands to the English border at Hay-on-Wye, where she will be greeted by film producer, Revel Guest, during the Hay Festival.

Vika will be raising funds in memory of her brother, Laurie, whose 21st birthday should have been May 28. Laurie died of cancer at the age of 13, and the fund set up by his family after Laurie’s death, has already raised more than £1 million to build a new teenage cancer unit at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, where he was treated.

Now the hospital is appealing for £4 million to refurbish the rest of the cancer department and this is the inspiration for Vika’s ride.

Vika will be accompanied during the 100 mile ride by at least one adult member of the Offa’s Dyke branch of Endurance GB on each day of her ride, as well as by her friends from the Golden Valley Pony Club.

To ensure that she is properly prepared for the ride, Vika Engel has become a full member of Offa’s Dyke branch of Endurance GB, the governing body of the sport of endurance riding in the UK. She and her friends then plan to use the Forest of Dean pleasure ride as a training ride for their planned 100 mile epic ride to raise funds for the Laurie Engel Fund...

Read more here:
http://www.endurancegb.co.uk/html/item.asp?ItemId=3047

Nutrition Service Co. Seals Commits as Alltech Official Partner of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy

March 13, 2013
 
Press Contacts:  Elizabeth Adams, Alltech PR
eadams@alltech.com; (859) 401-2964
 
Wayne Nighorn, President of Nutrition Service
(920) 822-8881
 
[PULASKI, Wis.] –Nutrition Service Co., a Wisconsin-based developer of equine and livestock nutrition, has joined as an Alltech Official Partner of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy. Officials with the company announced the partnership March 9 during an open house at Nutrition Service Co.’s headquarters in Pulaski, Wis.
 
This partnership provides a wide range of benefits including exclusive marketing rights. Nutrition Service Co. will activate a number of marketing and promotional campaigns through its line of Equi-Rich Horse Feeds, which are developed through the Alltech Equine Advantage Program. As an Alltech Official Partner, the company will involve their customers throughout Wisconsin in the excitement of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy.
 
“Nutrition Service Co. is proud to sign on as an Alltech Official Partner of Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy,” said Wayne Nighorn, president of Nutrition Service Co. “This is a priceless opportunity for our company to reinforce its support of the equine community and link our new Equi-Rich Horse Feeds to the most celebrated event in the world of equestrian sport.”

“Alltech and Nutrition Service Co. have a long-standing history of service to the agricultural community of America,” said Jennifer Rittenhouse, regional marketing manager for Alltech. “Sharing Alltech’s commitment to health and performance of horses, Nutrition Service Co. will help spread the news of the Games to farming communities in America’s Midwest region.”

The Alltech Official Partner Program is a strategic sales and marketing partnership with leading horse feed and animal health companies throughout the world. It enables these global partners to differentiate their feed with the Alltech Equine Advantage and also provides them with the right to use Alltech Official Partner brand marks linked to the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy. This exclusive program allows partners and their customers to share in the excitement of the world’s most celebrated equestrian championships.

Dubai: Al Beloushi brothers score 1-2 in Crown Prince Cup

Gulfnews.com - Full Article

Young Rashid blazes away on Davlyn Park Picasso

By M. Satya Narayan, Abu Dhabi Deputy Editor
Published: 18:24 March 23, 2013

Dubai: Rashid Ahmad Al Beloushi and his elder brother and trainer Yousuf Ahmad Al Beloushi made it a 1-2 for their family as well as Al Reef Stables to drive away with a Range Rover each after the Dubai Crown Prince Endurance Cup, 120-km Two Star ride on Saturday.

The young Rashed on Davlyn Park Picasso unleashed one of the fastest final loop speeds when his average speed of 37.97 kmph for the final 20-km stage took him from 10th place to first leaving behind a handful of fancied riders including Yousef, who trained the winning horse. Even more remarkable was the winning time of 4 hours 04 mins 32 secs which was better than last year’s 4:21.46 - also set by a horse trained by Yousef when Sultan Ahmad Al Beloushi won this prestigious ride on Cronus.

While Rashid rode Davlyn Park Picasso at 10th after 100 kms, Yousef was fourth on Elyphyn Silverlight while it was Saeed Ahmad Jaber Al Harbi on La Crysada who was in the lead. Even as leads were being exchanged at the top, young Rashid who had kept his horse’s speed to just over 24km/h in the penultimate stage of 20 kms, went for it and finally made it by almost breaking the four-hour barrier for a 120-km event...

Read more here:
http://gulfnews.com/sport/horse-racing/al-beloushi-brothers-score-1-2-in-crown-prince-cup-1.1161915