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Report by Dane Frazier:

On February 6-10th, an Open Forum was held in Paris, France organized by the
FEI Endurance Committee in conjunction with the French National Federation.
One hundred and fifteen participants representing twenty-nine National
Federations, which included all of the power bases for endurance (North
America, South America, Europe, Middle East, AustraloAsia, and Africa),
participated.   The USA was represented by Mr.Tony Benedetti, Mr.Art Priesz
Jr.,  Ms. Mary Lutz, Ms. Sue Phillips, and Dr. Nancy Elliott.

On February 6, a meeting of the Toulouse Group was held prior to the Open
Forum to which the USA, Australia, and others were also invited.    The USA
had much to contribute to this group's deliberations.  The USA
representatives will send a separate report of this meeting.

On February  7, the Open Forum, which was chaired by the FEI 1st Vice
President, Mr. Freddy Serpieri, was held for all representatives.  7
National Federations made presentations on endurance matters.  Following
these, members of the FEI Endurance Committee gave presentations on current
topics.  Following this session,  an open forum was held where views were
exchanged among the endurance world and the FEI.   USA representatives will
also send a separate report.

On Feb 8, Ms. Carol Bunting, Dr. James Bryant, and Michael Stone gave the
first Technical Delegate Course ever held for endurance. On February 9, Dr.
James Bryant, Dr. Martha  Metcheff, and Dr. Fred Barrelet gave an advanced
veterinary course.  The USA representatives will give reports on these
meeting.

On February 10,  a meeting of the FEI Endurance Committee was held.  I will
report on that meeting.

FEI Endurance Committee Report
Paris, France
10 February 2003



 Present at the meeting was Dr. Hallvard Sommerseth, (NOR) Chairman; Mr.
Faisal Seddiq al Mutawa (UAE) , Vice Chairman; Mr. Horst Muller (GER),
member,  Dr. Dane Frazier (USA), member; Mr. Ramon Lopez Lax (ESP) member,
Mr. Ian Williams, FEI Endurance Department, Ms. Anna Honore, FEI Endurance
Department,and Michael Stone, FEI Sports Director.  Invited guests included
Mr. Allan Renner (AUS) and Dr. James Bryant (Can).

Minutes

The minutes from the previous FEI Endurance Committee meeting in
London-Heathrow were approved.

Mr. Allen Renner's Presentation.

Mr. Allen Renner (Aus) gave a presentation in support of his application for
appointment to the committee when the next opening becomes available.. Mr.
Renner, until recently, had served as the FEI Development Officer for South
East Asia. The FEI regulations allow for 5 members on its Technical
Committees which precludes a representative from every Group.  However,
coopted members are allowed when necessary who serve without remuneration.

The members of the FEI Endurance Committee serve for a term of  4 years with
a staggered rotation.  The Chair of the Endurance Committee can serve an
additional 4-year term.  Mr. Faisal Seddiq and Mr. Horst Muller are slated
to rotate off of the committee in the Spring unless there is change in the
Chair of the Committee.

Seminars and Courses

A total of 6 seminars and courses were identified which will be held in the
USA, Namibia, Poland, Ireland, and Germany from the Spring until the Fall.
There is also much interest for additional courses to be held in South
America, which will be coordinated by Ms. Elizabeth Van Schelle, FEI
Development Officer for this region.

Championships

The World Championship for Endurance is slated for Dubai, UAE.  The final
date has not been announced, but it is most likely that the competition will
take place in February 2004.  For those countries that have Continental
Championships in the Fall (including the USA), selection procedures for the
World Championship Team will need to be considered and implemented shortly
after the conclusion of the Continental Championship.

Penalties for Overriding

Various systems adopted by different Federations were reviewed.  These
systems evolved to fill the needs within countries to address specific
problems under different cultures.  This makes it very difficult to
establish any system, which could function worldwide.  The committee feels
that the National Federations also should play a role  and may be a more
appropriate place to address this problem than at the level of the FEI
although the FEI could monitor this through the ride return documentation
following an event..

Stewards and Technical Delegate Courses

The notion is evolving that the different officials for Championships should
be selected from experienced individuals who have attended specific courses
in their area of appointment instead of the current system whereby an
official may serve in any position (except the veterinary commission).

The TD Seminar taught by Ms. Carol Bunting was a first step in this
direction.  The FEI Endurance Committee would like to see a Steward General
appointed in each NF to oversee the development of stewards in each country.
Similar to the TD course, the possibility of a Stewards course is being
considered.

The World Championship in Dubai 2004 has been offered as another venue for
the possible conduct of these advanced  courses for endurance officials.

It was repeatedly noted in the sessions, that there are not physically
enough officials, especially the veterinarians, to service the number of FEI
endurance events worldwide.  Endurance is exploding  with expansion of ride
numbers  as well as countries holding their first events.  Mongolia had its
first FEI ride last year as did Chili, Argentina, Costa Rica, and Namibia.
India had its first ride in February.  Of all of the international
disciplines, Endurance is second to Jumping in the number of FEI
competitions scheduled for this year.

Lack of officials is compromising the growth of FEI endurance competitions.
Recognition of this problem for endurance, which is much more acute than
found in the other international disciplines, seems to be off the radar
screens of many NFs.  Many officials who complete course requirements,
experience requirements, and application requirements still are waiting more
than a year(s) to be sent forward from the NF to the FEI.  I would ask that
some sort of a "Fast Tracking" system be considered for endurance until this
shortfall of officials is resolved.


I have asked the FEI Endurance Committee for a dispensation for countries
such as the USA, Australia, and possibly South Africa  under the "Foreign
Country" ruling in respect to ride officials.  The FEI has allowed the USA
to count "time zones" as countries for the purpose of  the appointment of
ride officials.  Due to the great distances,  this still has imposed a
financial hardship on organizing committees and inhibited the number of FEI
rides held.  Alternatively, I have asked that "states" be considered a
separate country for the purpose of the appointment of officials (not for
the purpose of selecting teams).  The FEI Endurance Committee has agreed to
put this request forward for consideration.

Olympic Games

Horse performance events at the Olympic Games are again under great
scrutiny.  The announcement that 3 Day Eventing would be eliminated from the
Bejing venue has resulted in much negotiation with the organizers.  This
discipline under a modified format appears to have been reinstated.

This, along with the problems evident at the World Equestrian Games for our
discipline, has made this goal unlikely for the foreseeable future.
However, there is still a great deal of commitment within the sport to
achieve this goal without sacrificing the foundation  upon which Endurance
stands, unique among the international equestrian disciplines.

Open Forum

The Open Forum was a great success.  This has allowed direct communication
with the FEI and the FEI Endurance Committee from many nations representing
all of the power bases in the World.  The Forum has also provided an
opportunity for many nations to discuss common issues and find that everyone
does not agree on the solutions to these problems.  In short, these nations
got a small taste of the difficulties with which the Endurance Committee
constantly contends.  It is good for our collective soul and, hopefully,
will become an annual event.

Endurance Veterinary Advisory Committee

As a result of these meetings, an Endurance Veterinary Advisory Committee
has been established as a sub committee reporting to the FEI Endurance
Committee.  This committee of seven members represents North America, South
America, Europe, Middle East, Africa,  and AustraloAsia.  The function of
this committee is to advise the FEI Endurance Committee on veterinary
matters.

The current rules allow half of the Veterinary Commission at Championships
to be local veterinarians.  The sport has progressed to the point that all
of the veterinary commission for Championships should be approved by the FEI
Endurance Committee in consultation with the Organizing Committee and  the
Technical Delegate and advised by this newly formed committee.  The FEI
Endurance Committee in consultation with all of these should also be
involved in the approval of the treatment veterinarians for these highly
visible competitions.

North America is very fortunate to have Dr. Nancy Elliott nominated to
represent us on the Endurance Veterinary Advisory Committee.  Dr. Elliott
brings many skills to this table.  Her knowledge and experience from both
sides of the stethoscope as an official and as a rider brings an
appreciation for the sport  that is invaluable.  Dr. Elliott is to be
congratulated for the recognition by her peers of her expertise and
commitment to the sport of endurance.

Rules

Qualifications for horse/rider have been hotly debated within the endurance
community since the World Equestrian Games.  Much criticism landed at the
feet of the FEI Endurance Committee over the qualifications in place for the
WEG.  At the London-Heathrow Meeting, the Committee proposed a much more
stringent qualification criteria in response to this criticism.  The Bureau
delayed action on this proposal until after the Open Forum meeting in Paris.

During the time between these meetings, much of the World was critical of
one aspect or another of the FEI Endurance Committee's proposals.  After the
WEG, everyone wanted tougher criteria; but, when their ox was being gored,
they petitioned for relief by asking for waivers.  At the Toulouse Group
meeting preceding the Open Forum at which everyone was invited to attend and
contribute, the collective desire of these representatives follows:

Article 825 Qualifications

4.      Qualification Procedure

4.1     To be qualified to participate in a Senior Championship or any other
CEI**** ride, a rider/horse as a combination has to have completed a CEI
ride over the same distance as the championship/CEI**** ride within the 24
months prior to the closing date for nominated entry.

4.2     If the rider/horse has not qualified as a combination per 4.1 above:
To be qualified to participate in a Senior Championship or any other
CEI****, a horse has to have completed a CEI ride over the same distance as
the championship/CEI**** ride within 24 months prior to the closing date for
nominated entry and the rider has to have completed 3 endurance rides (at
least one of them a CEI ride) over the same distance as the
championship/CEI**** ride within the current or preceding 3 years before the
event.

These qualification criteria are less demanding in many respects than the
qualification criteria preceding the WEG for which there was so much world
condemnation.  However, the FEI Endurance Committee exists to serve the
needs of the International Endurance Community.  The International Endurance
Community does not exist to serve the needs of the FEI Endurance Committee.
In the face of this overwhelming mandate, the FEI Endurance Committee is
sending this proposal to the General Assembly (actually the Bureau in Madrid
since the GA meeting in Bahrain has been canceled) for approval to go into
effect on 1 Jan 2004.

The Toulouse Group has also asked that there be a period of stability of
rules and that the rules be applied to everyone without exception.

Closing Thoughts

It is still very difficult to make rules that satisfy individual problems
within countries and that are also applicable to everyone in the world.
The representatives from the NFs have a responsibility to look out for their
"home folks".  I serve  the Group IV countries, but I also have a
responsibility for those with no direct voice on the committee and for the
international direction of this sport on my watch.  If I can answer any
questions, please advise.
Respectfully submitted:   Dane L. Frazier DVM


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