WEC Reports

After four long years of waiting, an anxious equestrian world watched the clock roll down to the moment everyone had their eyes turned to – the Opening Ceremonies of the 2006 Aachen FEI World Equestrian Games. And while gray skies and wet and windy weather welcomed the crème of the equine world to the picturesque town located in the westernmost corner of one of Europe’s most powerful horse countries, not even a downright deluge could have dampened the excitement and energy that was waiting to be unleashed over the next two weeks. And if ticket sales are any indication, the city of a quarter-of-a-million residents will forever be remembered by visitors long after the innumerable horse trailers and equestrian vacationers have made their way home.

Athletes, horses, owners, media and everyone in between began making their presence especially known over the last few days as the show grounds began to swell. As the Opening Ceremonies neared, the crowds gathered and the celebrations were at hand.

But, before the Opening Ceremonies, the HRH Princess Haya bin Al-Hussein of Jordan and Dubai, along with a handful of WEG dignitaries, was on-hand for the first press conference held at the Games. The HRH Princess Haya welcomed the press to Aachen and said, “As the President of the FEI [International Equestrian Federation], I am happy to be here at the start of the World Equestrian Games. It is an honor.” It was announced that 153 countries were broadcasting the Games to every corner of the world – an all-time record.

Asked about her time spent in competition, she said, “I really miss it…but I enjoy being the president of the FEI.” She acknowledged her excitement about Monday’s endurance championship, adding, “I will be attending all seven disciplines, but I would be very unpopular in my own family if I didn’t attend endurance tomorrow.” Teams from the Middle East have very good chances at taking home a medal at the end of the first day of competition.

The HRH Princess Haya has a longstanding equestrian show jumping career begun at the age of 13. She has represented her homeland in the Pan Arab Games, as well as the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.

Opening Ceremonies
Marching into the Main Stadium for the ceremonies, smartly dressed in the Team USA apparel proudly sponsored by Ariat, the American contingent was not only large in number, but ready to take on all challengers in the seven disciplines’ World Championships that were being contested. The Stars and Stripes was carried into the jam-packed stadium by the youngest and most senior members of the American squad – 10-year-old vaulter Elizabeth Ioannou from California and 63-year-old endurance rider Kathryn Downs from Maine.

Dignitaries, royalty, celebrities and equestrian stars – not to forget the all-important horses – were present for the beautiful presentation. The ceremony left no stone unturned in its exploration of the horse in German history during the two-hour-long event. From the amazing 64-stallion German quadrille that thrilled the crowd to the Parade of Nations that saw members of each of the various teams enter the stadium, there were no disappointments and memories made to last a lifetime. Even the rain stopped to make way for moments of sunshine, setting a perfect stage for the call to all riders to come and compete at the fifth installment of the combined world championships.

An Early Kick-Off: Endurance
The lead event at the 2006 WEG, beginning before sunrise on Monday morning is the endurance ride. Five horse-and-rider combinations are ready to hit the 100-mile test of stamina and skill for Team USA.

Maine’s Kathryn Downs and Pygmalion (10-year-old Arabian gelding); Illinois’ Joseph Mattingley and SA Laribou (11-year-old Arabian gelding); Utah’s Christoph Schork and Taj Rai Hasan (eight-year-old Arabian gelding); and New Jersey’s veterinarian Meg Sleeper and Shyrocco Troilus (14-year-old half-Arabian gelding) will be in competition.
Both Stephen Rojek and his 10-year-old Arabian gelding, Finch, were pulled from competition for medical reasons. This allowed the team alternate horse-and-rider combination of California’s Jennifer Niehaus and Cheyenne XII (14-year-old Arabian gelding) to take to the course.

Some 168 competitors from 42 countries are expected to head out on the 100-mile course beginning at 6 a.m. This is an increase in number from the last WEG held in Jerez, Spain, where 150 combinations vied for a place on the medal podium.

Of course, weather plays a huge part in the running of an endurance race. And while the region has been experiencing some wildly fluctuating temperatures over the past month, the forecast for the endurance ride has been set – steady light rain in the morning, with showers continuing in the afternoon. Winds are expected out of the southwest at 10 to 15 mph, with a high temperature of 64 degrees – a welcomed surprise when it had been once thought there was a possibility to face temperatures in the 90s for a high.

The route for this World Championship will cover a course leading from the Main Stadium, through the suburbs of Aachen and then head out toward the city of Vaals in The Netherlands. Over the long and grueling day, the riders and their amazing mounts will see the highest peak in the Dutch countryside before turning into Belgium where they will face a wooded section of the course. The riders will head back into Germany for a short bit before turning their ways back to Belgium for the longest section of the route which, just so happens, takes place during what could be the warmest part of the day. The last portion of that leg straddles the Dutch-Belgian border before retracing part of the course seen earlier in the morning. The final leg of the test will find the endurance riders working the ground that, later in the week, the eventing teams will call home. Then, it is a dash to the finish line where the action began some half-a-day earlier – the Main Stadium – where there are certai
n to be cheering crowds to welcome the winners of the ultimate test of stamina and determination in the equine sports world. Actually, simply finishing the race with a horse in good condition is reason enough to be given the title “winner.”

To prepare the long and winding course has been an amazing feat, and course organizers have been working for years with the locals to carve out the path and present not only a challenging course, but doing so in the midst of an area of the country that is experiencing its highest tourist season.

Over the next seven days (Week 1), there will also be medals awarded in dressage, vaulting and eventing.