81 Entries from 32 Nations Set for World Endurance Championship in Pisa, Italy on Saturday

81 entries from 32 nations are set for the 160-km World Endurance Championship in Pisa, Italy on Saturday, May 22.

See the complete list of entries here:
2021WECEntries

Vetting in starts Friday at 3 PM local time.

Start time for the race is 7 AM local time (in the US, 1 AM Eastern, 12 midnight Central, 11 PM Mountain, 10 PM Pacific)

You can watch live on the free Yamahah App on your devices; we will provide updates when possible.

More at:
www.endurance.net/international/Italy/2021WorldEnduranceChampionship/

World Endurance Championship USA Team Flashback: The Lightning Bolt in Malaysia, 2008

As our USA Endurance Team preps for the 2021 World Endurance Championship in Italy on May 22, we look back to the 2008 WEC in Malaysia, where a lightning bolt nearly struck USA Team members Jan Worthington (now an AERC Hall of Famer) and Leon, and Meg Sleeper and Reveille on loop 2 in the dark.

Both horses and riders went down. Both got back on and continued riding, moving through the loops toward the finish line of 160 km, and more drama ensued….

Read Meg's amazing recap of that crazy race here from her diary, November 8: http://www.endurance.net/2008WEC/megnotes.html

Endurance World is Heading to Pisa

Image by Martin Dokoupil

FEI.org - Full Article

17 May 2021

We look ahead to this weekend's Longines FEI Endurance World Championship... The long journey back to a major international championships is complete… but the medals will only be handed over after another long journey!

We can’t wait for this weekend’s Longines FEI Endurance World Championship in Pisa, Italy, where 81 athletes representing 32 countries and five continents will vie for gold.

They’ll race for an incredible 160km in the magnificent Parco Naturale Migliarino San Rossore Massaciuccoli, one of the largest and most ancient nature parks in Tuscany.

Athletes and their brave horses will travel across meadows, hills, pine forests and marshes amidst the gentle breeze from the nearby Tyrrhenian Sea.

Amongst the competitors are the 2016 World champion, Spain’s Jaume Punti Dachs, and his wife, Maria Alvarez Ponton, who has taken Individual gold twice during her successful career - first at Terengganu in Malaysia in 2008 and again in Kentucky, USA in 2010.

Also vying for top spot this time out will be Alex Luque Moral from Spain and Bahrain’s Sheikh Nasser Bin Hamad Al Khalifa who respectively took silver and bronze at the 2016 FEI World Championships in Samorin, Slovakia.

A total of 13 nations will be chasing down the Team title, with European champions Spain among the favourites.

Read more here:
https://www.fei.org/stories/sport/endurance/endurance-world-heading-pisa

SmartPak on the Steppe: Meet 2021 Mongol Derby Competitor Kayleigh Davenport

EventingNation.com - Full Article

By Leslie Wylie on Apr 6, 2021 12:00 pm - 907 views

In August 2021 SmartPakker Kayleigh Davenport will embark upon the ride of her life: the Mongol Derby, widely regarded as the toughest horse race in the world. Inspired by the Genghis Khan’s original “pony express,” there’s no trail or set route, just a series of GPS checkpoints/horse exchange stations to hit over the course of 1,000 km and 7-10 days. Riders carry only 11 pounds of gear, rely on nomadic herding families for sustenance and shelter, and spend their days riding at speed on native horses who are equal parts incredible AND incredibly unpredictable.

SmartPak was a strong supporter of NM’s own Leslie Wylie when she tackled the race in 2017, and now we’re excited to cheer Kaleigh on! Over the coming months we’ll be sharing her journey to the race. First things first, let’s get to know Kaleigh better — and who better to interrogate/ interview her than Leslie!...

Read more here:
https://eventingnation.com/smartpak-on-the-steppe-meet-2021-mongol-derby-competitor-kayleigh-davenport/?utm_medium=40digest.7days3.20210407.home&utm_source=email&utm_content=&utm_campaign=campaign

Athletes from five continents to contest Longines FEI Endurance World Championships 2021

Inside.FEI.org

4 May 2021
Author: Louise Parkes

The line-up for the Longines FEI Endurance World Championship in Pisa, Italy has been confirmed, with competitors from 32 countries and five continents ready to challenge for the 2021 individual and team world titles on Saturday May 22.

Amongst them are the 2016 World Champion, Spain’s Jaume Punti Dachs, and his wife Maria Alvarez Ponton who has taken individual gold twice during her successful career - first at Terengganu in Malaysia in 2008 and again in Kentucky, USA in 2010. Also vying for top spot this time out will be Alex Luque Moral from Spain and Bahrain’s Sheikh Nasser Bin Hamad Al Khalifa who respectively took silver and bronze at the 2016 World Championships in Samorin, Slovakia. A total of 13 nations will be chasing down the team title.

Magnificent

The event will be staged in the magnificent Parco Naturale Migliarino San Rossore Massaciuccoli, one of the largest and most ancient nature parks in Tuscany. Close to the lovely city of Pisa which is considered one of the pearls of Italy with its world-famous Leaning Tower in the Piazza dei Miracoli, the park extends over 23,000 hectares and boasts a huge variety of landscapes...

More at:
https://inside.fei.org/media-updates/athletes-five-continents-contest-longines-fei-endurance-world-championships-2021

First race of 2021 in Sweden took place at Övedskloster

Endurance-world.com - Full Article

Info@endurance-world.com
13th May 2021

Övedsritten, Sweden. Saturday 8 May 2021.

Övedsritten ran for the fourth year in a row and this year was the first time as an international ride. The ride is a collaboration between the event organiser, the endurance club Anklams Distansryttarsällskap, and the eventing club Öveds jakt och fältrittklubb.

The ride was held on the grounds belonging to the Övedskloster castle and in fact the participants were greeted for the arrival inspection at the courtyard. The loops ran through a historical landscape where several battles between Swedes and Danes took place in the 1600. It passed over an old extinguished volcano, through an eventing water crossing and offers an extraordinary view over the landscape and the lake Vombsjön. The riders got to enjoy nice gravel and grass roads running through open landscape and leaf forests passing picturesque little houses and farms. Athletes traveling from the North especially appreciated the summery feeling offered by the warm weather, wild flowers, green forests and prospering fields...

Read more here:
https://endurance-world.com/first-race-of-2021-in-sweden-took-place-at-ovedskloster/

Endurance World Championship Set to Run Through Tuscany

2016 FEI Endurance World Champion, Spain’s Jaume Punti Dachs. (FEI/Miro Nota)

HorseSport.com - Full Article

By: Louise Parkes / FEI | May 14, 2021

The line-up for the Longines FEI Endurance World Championship in Pisa, Italy has been confirmed, with competitors from 32 countries and five continents ready to challenge for the 2021 individual and team world titles on Saturday May 22.

Among them are the 2016 World Champion, Spain’s Jaume Punti Dachs, and his wife Maria Alvarez Ponton who has taken individual gold twice during her successful career – first at Terengganu in Malaysia in 2008 and again in Kentucky, USA in 2010. Also vying for top spot this time out will be Alex Luque Moral from Spain and Bahrain’s Sheikh Nasser Bin Hamad Al Khalifa who respectively took silver and bronze at the 2016 World Championships in Samorin, Slovakia. A total of 13 nations will be chasing down the team title...

Read more here:
https://horsesport.com/horse-news/endurance-world-championship-set-run-through-tuscany/