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USA Equestrian, Inc. | |
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NEWS RELEASE | |
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| For Immediate Release | October 11, 2001 |
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USA EQUESTRIAN ANNOUNCES PLANS FOR USOC HEARING, WEBSITE COVERAGE | |
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USA Equestrian (formerly American Horse Shows Association) announced today that the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) has made arrangements for the formal, public hearing on National Governing Body (NGB) status to begin on Saturday morning in Austin, Texas. The United States Equestrian Team (USET) filed a formal USOC challenge against AHSA in February, commencing litigation in an attempt to take over the NGB status, which has always been held by AHSA. The hearing is scheduled to begin Saturday morning, October 13, 2001 at 8:30 a.m. local time (Central) at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin, TX. The hotel is located at 98 San Jacinto Boulevard, and the hearing will continue through Monday, October 15, 2001. It is required by law to be open to the public. Members of the public and media who wish to attend are not required to make any formal or advance reservation or arrangements. USA Equestrian, the only organization recognized as the National Equestrian Federation of the United States by the sport's international federation, the Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI) headquartered in Switzerland, will provide continuous coverage of the hearing on its website, at http://www.equestrian.org/legal/hearings/index.asp. Updates will be provided following each morning and afternoon session, and questions will be answered as permitted by available time and personnel. Email questions should be sent to: questions@equestrian.org. Following the conclusion of the hearing, a written ruling is expected to be issued following deliberations by a 5-member hearing panel of the USOC. That ruling is in the form of a recommendation to the full Board of Directors of the USOC, which is scheduled to consider it at its next meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah, on October 27 and 28, 2001. Following that consideration, the decision of the USOC is subject to arbitration under USOC procedures. The president of USA Equestrian, Alan F. Balch, commented, "We very much regret that we could not settle this matter within the equestrian family. We tried every conceivable method of communication with the current leadership of the USET, but even the simplest of meetings were difficult to arrange. Those who have followed this issue for the last several months are well aware that we did not instigate these very expensive proceedings, but we have had to defend the integrity of our organization, and the sport, from this aggressive challenge. We believe this to be a wasteful, divisive, and destructive effort by the USET, but we are now going to see some definitive steps taken. Holding the hearing in itself is a signal that the conflict is finally moving toward a conclusion." Balch said that a meeting of the Executive Committee of USA Equestrian, and possibly the full board, would be held in early November to evaluate the result of the hearing and make future plans depending on its outcome.
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ENDS
For more information, please contact Christine E. Stafford, Director of Communications on (859) 225 6923 or via email at cstafford@equestrian.org. USA Equestrian press releases are available on our web site - www.equestrian.org. | |
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USA Equestrian, Inc., as the National Equestrian Federation of the U.S., is the regulatory body for the Olympic and World Championship sports of dressage, driving, endurance, eventing, reining, show jumping, and vaulting, as well as 19 other breeds and disciplines of equestrian competition. As the country’s largest multi-breed organization, the Federation has over 80,000 members and recognizes more than 2,800 competitions nationwide each year. It governs all aspects of competition, including educating and licensing all judges, stewards, and technical delegates who officiate at these shows. | |
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