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I am, at heart, a ludicrously sentimental person, and what always gets me the most about any sporting triumph is the understanding of what it took to get there. The setbacks, the injuries, the heartbreaks, the closed doors, the endless, unrelenting work; the upward battles, the downhill coasts, the dreams deferred. It’s the horses you invest your hopes into but then something goes irrevocably wrong; the horses everyone tells you to give up on but then everything goes undeniably right. It’s the questioning of whether this really is meant to be your life, and your calling, or if you’re trying to force a square peg into a round hole. It’s trying your best and weathering the pain when it goes wrong and still having to wake up to see someone tearing you down online in the morning, even though they don’t know any of the details. It’s early mornings in the rain; late nights in the cold. And here you are: you’ve made it.
Whether your ‘made it’ is a trip to the Olympics or simply getting your baby horse’s right lead for the first time, take a moment today to celebrate yourself. Because you did this. And that is very, very cool.
Events Opening Today: Silverwood Farm Fall H.T., Bucks County Horse Park H.T., Seneca Valley PC H.T., USEA AEC, $60,000 Adequan Advanced Final, and ATC Finals
Events Closing Today: Area VII Young Rider Benefit H.T. at Caber Farm, Cobblestone Farms H.T. II, Hoosier Horse Trials, River Glen Summer H.T., Catalpa Corner Charity Horse Trials, Huntington Farm H.T., Olney Farm Horse Trials – Modified Pending USEF Approval, Bayou Gulch H.T.
Tuesday News & Notes from Around the World:
Great news for folks who have tickets to some, but not all, days of the equestrian sports at Paris 2024. The kind folks at Haras de Jardy, which is just five minutes from Versailles and truly, one of the most beautiful competition venues you will ever come across, will be putting on an unofficial fanzone throughout the equestrian disciplines at the Games, with a big screen for viewing and a restaurant and bar to keep you fed and watered. Find out more here, plus get involved with their stop on the Olympic flame’s relay through France.
The Tory government has been toppled in the UK after a series of colossal misfires, and like, thank god. But what does the right-leaning equestrian industry think about having Labour back in charge? Here’s a bit of a round-up courtesy of Horse & Hound, and yeah, it’s mostly about hunting.
Here’s something to keep us all going in the dregs of next month, when we’re all feeling the post-Paris blues and autumn is on the verge of creeping in even though we never even got a summer (in the UK, anyway – lord help us). Horse & Country has teamed up with the USEA to offer wall-to-wall streaming of this year’s AECs, and even better, as a USEA member you can watch it all for free with a week-long trial. Here’s the info you need.
As if being a high-flying eventer, a former World Champion, and a soon-to-be Olympian again wasn’t enough, Germany’s Sandra Auffarth is also really, really good at the whole showjumping thing. Over the weekend, she took herself to CHIO Falsterbo in Sweden and casually won the CSI5* Agria Grand Prix, beating several partnerships that’ll be heading to Paris in that discipline. Wild stuff. We wouldn’t want to bet against her in that two-round final day in Paris. Check out the full story and a video of her winning round here.
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Sponsor Corner: Italy has announced their team for the Paris Olympics! Congratulations to Evelina Bertoli, Emiliano Portale, Pietro Sandei, and Giovanni Ugolotti. Want to catch up on the latest Olympic updates? View more of EN’s Olympic coverage here.
Watch This:
Head to Versailles, our home for next week and the weeks beyond, to see the gilded Palace that’ll be the backdrop for the greatest sporting moments of the summer.
