Australia: Local takes on Mongol Derby

Northweststart.com.au - Full Article

Samantha Walton
@SamanthaWalton0

29 Jul 2016,

A MOUNT Isa woman is one of four Australians who will take on the longest and toughest horse race in the world.

Camille Champagne is the co-manager of Linda Downs station located 225-kilometres south west of Mount Isa and will travel overseas to compete in the Mongol Derby.

The derby is a 1000-kilometre course that recreates Chinggis Khaan's legendary empire-busting postal system. Riders change semi-wild horses every 40-kilometres, and live with herders and camp under the stars.

Riders are only allowed to carry a five-kilogram survival pack, eat local cuisine and complete the course on their own. Competitors will ride through different terrain and weather conditions adding to the complexity of the challenge.

Ms Champagne was one of the lucky few to be selected to attend the world competition and said she had been preparing for this type of competition for many years...

Read more here:
http://www.northweststar.com.au/story/4060602/local-takes-on-mongol-derby/

FEI Awards 2016: global quest for equestrian heroes begins

FEIAwards.org

Jul 22, 2016

The Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI), world governing body of equestrian sport, has today launched the FEI Awards 2016. This officially marks the beginning of the 8 week nomination phase that will result in the winners being announced at the FEI Awards Gala Ceremony presented by Longines in Tokyo (JPN) on 22 November 2016.

Launched in 2009, the FEI Awards are an annual salute to excellence, determination, resolve, courage and dedication. In order to recognise and celebrate the exceptional individuals and organisations that make the equestrian community so unique, the FEI calls upon the public every year to nominate their heroes via the online platform at www.feiawards.org.

“We are a global sport but we are also a way of life and a community with a very strong set of values”, FEI President Ingmar De Vos said. “The FEI Awards honour everyone who make our sport happen and this has been shown time and time again in the thousands of nominations we have received since the FEI Awards were launched in 2009.

“This being an Olympic/Paralympic year, I am sure the performances and the dedication of so many individuals will add to the conversations around the heroes both in and out of the arena and I really look forward to discovering more inspirational stories that make our sport so unique. I encourage everyone to go to the website and nominate their heroes so that they can be recognised and celebrated by the global community.”


FEI Awards 2016 - five hotly-contested categories

The Longines Rising Star Award is for a person aged 14 to 21 who demonstrates outstanding sporting talent and commitment. Jessica Mendoza (GBR), who won this award in 2015, has recently been announced as reserve rider for the British Jumping team heading to the Rio2016 Olympic Games! Former winners of this category also competing in Rio, include China’s Alex Hua Tian, described in the Chinese press as “one in a billion” following the 2008 Olympic Games.

Juan-Carlos Capelli, Longines Vice President and Head of International Marketing, noted: “For a number of years we have been strongly supporting young sportswomen and men active in the disciplines we are associated with, such as equestrian sports, alpine skiing and tennis. As we conceive our partnerships on a long term basis, we are keen to contribute to further to the development and outreach of the sports we are involved in. The Longines Rising Star award will be presented for the fourth time to a young talented equestrian athlete between 14 and 21 years. The recipient will succeed to the previous outstanding laureates: American rider Reed Kessler, Mauritian vaulter Lambert Leclezio and British rider Jessica Mendoza.”

The Best Athlete Award celebrates the athlete who over the last 12 months has demonstrated exceptional skills in the arena, and has taken equestrian sport to a new level. Awarded to Australia’s Boyd Exell in 2015 for his unmatched track record in the sport of Driving, including Six World Championship titles alongside numerous FEI World Cup™ titles. Previous winners of this category heading to Rio2016 seeking to add more Olympic gold medals to their collection include defending champions Charlotte Dujardin (GBR) and Michael Jung (GER), and Dutch jumping legend Jeroen Dubbeldam, gold medallist from Sydney 2000.

The Against All Odds Award acknowledges people who have pursued their equestrian ambitions despite physical issues or extremely difficult personal circumstances. Last year this award went to Endurance athlete Oriana Ricca Marmissolle (URU) who following diagnosis and treatment for Phase III Hodgkin’s Lymphoma at just 17 years of age was back in the saddle within days of finishing chemotherapy treatment competing at events in Uruguay, France, Brazil and Chile. Former winners of this category include USA’s Sydney Collier and Germany’s highly experienced and multi medalled Angelika Trabert, both selected to compete at the Rio2016 Paralympic Games.

The Best Groom Award is dedicated to the vital behind-the-scenes team members who work 24/7 to ensure their horses get the best possible care and attention. Last year, Mexico’s Eddie Garcia Luna was celebrated for his dedication and commitment to Olympic rider Steffen Peters horses.

The FEI Solidarity Award – which in 2015 went to a tailor-made project in Haiti called “Les Chevaux qui pansent les plaies” (Horses that heal wounds) providing therapeutic riding for over 250 children affected by the 2010 earthquake and in particular amputees. The top athletes were then given the opportunity to train in Para-Equestrian sport. This award will be presented to an FEI Solidarity or equestrian development project, or an individual or organisation that has demonstrated skill, dedication and energy in expanding equestrian sport.

Nominations for the FEI Awards 2016 will close at midnight on 18 September 2016.


Glamorous Gala

The winners of the awards will be flown to the glittering FEI Awards Gala presented by Longines in Tokyo (JPN), where over 350 guests from the global equestrian community, including representatives from the Tokyo 2020 and the FEI’s National Federations around the world, will celebrate their triumphs.


FEI Awards 2016 - your help

To make the FEI Awards 2016 even bigger and better, we are asking for your help. Your input will make these Awards truly global. To promote these Awards to your readers, please feel free to download and use our widgets at www.feiawards.org .
You can also download the launch video here: https://spaces.hightail.com/receive/t74gT.
Note: Additional videos to promote each of the categories will also be made available to media.


Follow the FEI Awards 2016 on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram #feiawards


FEI Photo Catalogue: Images for editorial purposes are available for free download at www.feiphotos.org

FEI Suspends Uruguayan Endurance Rider

FEI.org

Jul 28, 2016

The FEI Tribunal has issued a final decisions in a prohibited substance case involving endurance.

The FEI Tribunal imposed a two-year suspension on the Uruguayan endurance rider Fernanda Villar, effective immediately. Samples taken from her horse LG Muneerah, winner of the CEI2* in Trinidad, Uruguay, on Aug. 8, 2015, returned positive for guanabenz, a sedative with analgesic effects that is banned under the EADCMRs.

The period of provisional suspension, which came into effect on Sept. 29, 2015, the date of notification, has been credited against the period of ineligibility, which will run through to June 22, 2017. The athlete is also fined CHF 2,000 and ordered to contribute CHF 1,500 towards the cost of the judicial procedure.

The full final decision is available here.

Australia Announces team for 2016 FEI World Endurance Championships for Seniors

Equestrian.org.au

July 22 2016

National Endurance Selectors have announced the athletes that will represent Australia at the upcoming FEI World Endurance Championships for Seniors from 16 – 18 September 2016, in Samorin, Slovakia.

Congratulations to those selected in the team, listed in alphabetical order:

Ben Hudson & Oso Cap Braveheart
Sasha Laws-King & Oso Edith
Rebecca Pinder & Safwa
Jodie Salinas & Koela De La Dour
Alexandra Toft & Dream Dancer te
Travelling Reserve Rider: Penny Toft
Travelling Reserve Horses: Charlotte te & Oso Lee

The team will be accompanied by Andrew Kettlewell in the role of Chef d’Equipe.

Endurance horseback rider will face biggest challenge yet: 621-mile Mongol Derby

Santafenewmexican.com - Full Article

Posted: Saturday, July 23, 2016
By Staci Matlock
The New Mexican

RATON — After her first 26-mile endurance horseback ride, Marcia Hefker was so tired she fell asleep by the campfire. “Someone had to wake me up because the bottom of my tennis shoes were smoking,” she said on a recent early morning ride across a friend’s ranch.
Now, 15 years later, riding 100 miles in a day isn’t unusual for her.

Hefker paused her gray Arabian horse Vegas, nicknamed Eddy, and gestured toward the mesas scattered around Raton, along with tumbled volcanic rock and grass-covered folds of land. “This is what draws me to endurance riding,” she said. “It is the perfect marriage between getting to take horses and seeing remote places all over the country and the world...”

Read more here:
http://www.santafenewmexican.com/life/features/endurance-horseback-rider-will-face-biggest-challenge-yet--mile/article_2aef77d2-dbeb-5b3d-9d9a-3e5a66e12e70.html

Canada: M.D. rider hitting the Pink Trail

Vauxhalladvance.com - Full Article

July 21 2016

By Nikki Jamieson
Vauxhall Advance
njamieson@tabertimes.com

For some horse riders, it is equal parts the journey and the experience. That’s why Sue Meier will be will be spending the better part of a month riding through Alberta on the back of a pink horse.

Meier, alongside her Quarter/Morgan cross horse Summer. will be one of the few long-riders in the 8th annual Wild Pink Yonder ride, a 23-day trek across Alberta to raise money for the Cancer Research Institute of Northern Alberta.

“I wanted to do all or nothing,” said Meier. “Just to conquer and experience...”

Read more here:
http://www.vauxhalladvance.com/news/2016/07/21/m-d-rider-hitting-the-pink-trail/

Wales: The foot (and hoof) race that pits humans against horses

CNN.com - Full Article

Article by David G. Allan, CNN
Video by Deborah Brunswick, CNN
Updated 9:44 AM ET, Fri July 22, 2016

(CNN)Humans have been chasing animals for their entire existence. Racing against them wasn't a matter of sport, but necessity, as our ancestors simply needed the food.

Most animals on Earth are faster than we are, but our proportionally bigger brains, endurance and ability to sweat give us a competitive advantage over them. This means that if you can stay committed to running long enough, you can eventually catch up to any beast because they tire out. That classic tortoise-versus-hare strategy, along with some crude weapons, is basically how we caught lunch until humans started riding horses at least 4,000 year ago.
Horses, domesticated as early 3500 B.C. and pulling chariots no later than 2000 B.C., were particularly worth the chase. Tamed and later bred for strength and speed, horses weren't just useful around a farm and in battle, they were transportation. Until the train was invented in the late 1700s, riding or being pulled by a horse was the fastest a human could move on land.


The foot (and hoof) race that pits humans against horses
Article by David G. Allan, CNN
Video by Deborah Brunswick, CNN
Updated 9:44 AM ET, Fri July 22, 2016

Man versus horse: the world's strangest marathon?

Since 1980, a man versus horse race has been staged in Wales; horses usually, but not always, win

Most animals are faster than humans, but our big brains, endurance and ability to sweat give us a competitive edge

(CNN)Humans have been chasing animals for their entire existence. Racing against them wasn't a matter of sport, but necessity, as our ancestors simply needed the food.

Most animals on Earth are faster than we are, but our proportionally bigger brains, endurance and ability to sweat give us a competitive advantage over them. This means that if you can stay committed to running long enough, you can eventually catch up to any beast because they tire out. That classic tortoise-versus-hare strategy, along with some crude weapons, is basically how we caught lunch until humans started riding horses at least 4,000 year ago.

Horses, domesticated as early 3500 B.C. and pulling chariots no later than 2000 B.C., were particularly worth the chase. Tamed and later bred for strength and speed, horses weren't just useful around a farm and in battle, they were transportation. Until the train was invented in the late 1700s, riding or being pulled by a horse was the fastest a human could move on land.

Horse-based sports have just as long a history. In the ancient Olympics, horse competitions (chariot and riding) were among the most prestigious of them all. Chariot racing was all the rage in the Roman Empire, and later came medieval jousting and modern thoroughbred racing.

But in 1980, man-versus-horse racing as an organized, internationally respected competition had its birth in a rural town in Wales in the United Kingdom.

A foot (and hoof) race between human and horse may sound like no contest. Horses are faster than humans by a lot, but our endurance and perspiration help us equal our equine competitors.

So, when you're talking marathon-length distances, humans do have a shot, especially if the conditions are favorable, such as hot temperatures and hard, dry conditions.

Man vs. horse

That argument over whether humans or horses are faster, and over what distance, found its way to the backroom of a hotel pub in 1980, in the town of Llanwrtyd Wells, Wales. The town bills itself as the smallest in Britain, with around 900 residents...

Read more and see video here:
http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/22/health/man-versus-
horse-race-fit-nation/