Tom Quilty Gold Cup returns to Queensland as Covid, floods and fires hit endurance riding community

ABC.net.au - Listen

ABC Sunshine Coast / By Tessa Mapstone
May 24 2023

More than 200 horses and riders are expected to compete in this year's Tom Quilty Gold Cup.

In Queensland's Mary Valley, horse enthusiasts are preparing to host Australia's national endurance championship: the Tom Quilty Gold Cup.

It's a gruelling 160km race run across 24 hours; a race steeped in history and folklore.

It was first conceived in 1966 by RM Williams to create a new way to test horse and horsemanship in a world that had moved on from droving.

Keeping the Tom Quilty going has become more challenging, but the passion for the sport is still strong.

Listen here:
https://www.abc.net.au/sunshine/programs/breakfast/tom-quilty-gold-up-returns-queensland-endurance-community/102390418

Australia's Toft Endurance Dynasty

FEI.org - Full Story

22 May 2023
Words by Stacey Stearns
Image of Penny and Peter with Bremervale Justice by Gilly Wheeler

A closer look at Penny, Peter and Alexandra Toft...

Legends aren’t born, they’re made, and Penny Toft of Australia is an Endurance legend.

Most riders dream of competing at the highest levels of the sport. The best consistently compete at the highest levels. For Penny, her husband Peter, and their daughter Alexandra, representing their country in international Endurance competitions is a way of life.

All three members of the Toft family have represented Australia at the highest level of the FEI World Equestrian Games and FEI Endurance World Championships, and their Toft Endurance continues to breed, train, and compete Endurance horses at the highest levels...

Read more here:
https://www.fei.org/stories/sport/endurance/australias-toft-endurance-dynasty

Bahrain Royal Team riders steal the show in Spain

GDNOnline.com - Full Article

Mon, 15 May 2023

Royal Endurance Team members took first place in the Spanish International Endurance Championship yesterday in the general and junior categories over a distance of 120km, which witnessed the participation of a number of top class riders.

Salman Isa emerged winner in the general category, followed by teammates Manal Al Fakhrawi in second place and Ahmed Al Thawadi third, while Abdullah Al Ruwaei won first place in the junior category.

Isa clocked six hours, seven minutes and 41 seconds, followed by Fakhrawi in 06:07:42 and Al Thawadi 06:07:46...

Read more here:
https://www.gdnonline.com/Details/1241666/Royal-Team-riders-steal-the-show-in-Spain

Australia: Stirling Classic sets the scene for Quilty in coming weeks

Photo: Sarah Sullivan

Arr.news - full article

By Fran Cleland, The Regional
12 May 2023

With the world-famous Tom Quilty Ride only weeks away, the Stirling Endurance Classic in Queensland attracted 178 riders across 10 sections.

Stirling’s Crossing Equestrian Complex opened its gates in early 2016 as Australia’s only privately owned, purpose-built endurance facility.

The complex has diverse topography suited for endurance rides as well as flat ground in the beautiful environment of Imbil.

The Warwick Trail and Endurance Riders Association took on the job of running the Stirling Classic at the venue.

One of the most notable performances in the 160km section was the equal first placing in the junior ride.

Marlee Carpenter on Teddy and Indi Else on De-Sharvall El Dakar rode an identical time 18 hours, 37 minutes, and recorded almost identical heart rate averages and an average speed of 8.59km/h.

Nine of the 19 starters in the 160km section completed the distance successfully...

Read more here:
https://arr.news/2023/05/12/stirling-classic-sets-the-scene-for-quilty-in-coming-weeks/

FEI Plan to increase minimum age to protect young endurance horses

Horseandhound.co.uk - Full Article

Lucy Elder
10 May, 2023 20:48

The FEI is debating an increase to the minimum age for horses in international endurance, with the age Arabian horses reach maturity and their long-term wellbeing in mind.

It is looking at upping the minimum age of horses in one-star rides from six to seven years old. This would not affect the “novice” qualification level, which is open to horses aged five and above.

“Many of the Arabian horses which predominate in the sport of endurance do not reach physical maturity by the age of six,” states the FEI proposal, adding that the suggested change is “to protect younger horses from competing at excessive speed in CEI*”...

Read more here:
https://www.horseandhound.co.uk/news/endurance-horses-minimum-age-825266

FEI Tribunal issues Consent Awards in Bahrain equine anti-doping case

Inside.FEI.org

05 May 2023
Author: FEI

The FEI Tribunal has issued two Consent Awards in an equine anti-doping case involving a Banned Substance.

In this case, the horse Intruso del Reparo (FEI ID 106GW63/BRN), tested positive for the Banned Substance Boldenone following samples taken at the CEI1* 100 - Sakhir, Bahrain International Endurance Village (BRN), 8-10 December 2022.

The athlete, Albrahim Alyahya (FEI ID 10204085/KSA) and the trainer Khalifa Saad Sharida Mubarak (FEI ID 10043686/BRN) both admitted the rule violation and accepted the proposed consequences. In its final decisions the FEI Tribunal disqualified the athlete and horse combination from the event and imposed an eighteen-month ineligibility period on the athlete and the trainer; the provisional suspension each already served shall be credited against their imposed ineligibility period. They were each also fined CHF 5,000.

The full Consent Award for Albrahim Alyahya is available here.

The full Consent Award for Khalifa Saad Sharida Mubarak is available here.

More at https://inside.fei.org/media-updates/fei-tribunal-issues-consent-awards-equine-anti-doping-case-1

Adventures in Equine Endurance: Pee Dee Professor Julia Fisher isn’t horsing around

Through her process of self-discovery at the age of 58, Professor Julia Fisher picked up the sport of endurance riding, in which she traversed distances of 50 miles or more on horseback. In 2017, she ponied up for the Mongol Derby on the Mongolian Steppes.

ColumbiaMetro.com - Full Story

By Meghan Godwin

Shortly after moving to Hartsville in 2008 to accept a position as a psychology instructor at the local liberal arts college, Julia Fisher realized something was missing from her life. She had raised two children, earned her Ph.D., spent nearly two decades in corporate marketing and communications, and dedicated another 15 years and counting to academia. “You define yourself as a mom for 20 years, and then when they go away you think, ‘Who am I?’ It really becomes a matter of self-discovery,” she says.

Her process of self-discovery resulted in a fast and furious introduction to endurance riding, an equestrian sport in which riders traverse distances of 50 miles or more on horseback over varying terrains, altitudes, and weather conditions. It was, by all means, a niche hobby to pick up at age 58, but she welcomed the challenge. “I felt like, ‘Why not?’” she says...

Read more here:
https://columbiametro.com/article/adventures-in-equine-endurance/