Equestrian Australia High Performance Weekly Update – 12th April 2021

This Wednesday will mark 100 days until the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and our riders, staff and support teams continue to diligently prepare for the postponed Games. Our updated Nomination Policies have been approved by the Australian Olympic Committee and Paralympics Australia and will be distributed to our riders and stakeholders shortly. 

As we approach the final stretch leading up to team selection for Tokyo 2020 our identified athletes remain focussed on the job at hand. A variety of events are available to our Australian based cohort which will allow for careful preparation ahead of the Games and our international based riders have a promising calendar which has become more defined following the gradual lifting of Covid-19 restrictions.

Our European based riders also welcome the return of FEI competition this week, commencing 12^th April, following the six-week lockdown put in place to curb the spread of EHV-1. In anticipation of the return to competition the FEI held a ‘Return to Competition Athlete Information Seminar’ last week, which presented the Return to Competition measures specifically applicable to athletes and grooms. The session was targeted at those athletes entered in FEI events over the next two weeks following the lift of lockdown. The full presentation is now available on the dedicated FEI EHV-1 hub here.  

This past weekend our Para-equestrian athletes had their first opportunity to take part in a competition against their fellow riders from across Australia. The Leader Equine Para National Championships 2020 took place at Victoria’s Boneo Park and attracted Para athletes from New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia. The Leader Equine Para National Championships 2020 were scheduled to take place last year but were postponed due to Covid-19 restrictions. The event was also the first Para-dressage selection event for 2021 and was a welcomed opportunity for our Australian based athletes to take to the dressage arena as they focus on possible team selection.

We were deeply saddened to learn of the passing of His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. HRH Prince Philip was undoubtedly one of the most influential figures in the history of equestrian sport and was also the longest serving FEI president, from 1964 -1986. Arguably his most influential legacy has been to the sport of Driving, which he introduced as a new discipline to the FEI during his presidency; and has seen Australia claim the World Championship title five times. Our thoughts go out to the Royal family as we join all those in the equestrian community to remember the great contribution HRH Prince Philip made to our sport.

As always the health and safety of our people and horses remain our priority as we work together as a high-performance community to navigate these unprecedented times.