All three equestrian disciplines – Jumping, Dressage, and Eventing – have been formally confirmed for the Paris 2024 Olympic program. In addition, the six events – team and individual across each of the three disciplines – and the full quota of 200 athlete/horse combinations have also been endorsed.
News of the confirmation came during today’s International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board online meeting, at which the full program for Paris 2024 was formally approved. Individual International Federations were also provided with details of the event program and athlete quotas for their sport in an official letter from IOC Director General Christophe De Kepper.
The ratification means that equestrian will keep its quota of 75 athlete/horse combinations for Jumping, 65 for Eventing, and 60 for Dressage.
“We are very happy to receive formal approval of our three disciplines for Paris 2024 from the IOC Executive Board and also confirmation that our athlete quota remains untouched at 200,” FEI President and IOC Member Ingmar De Vos said.
“This confirmation is also a token of appreciation for the efforts the FEI and the equestrian community have made to increase the fan base and improve digital figures for our sport. We really appreciate that the IOC didn’t touch our quota as we knew they needed to reduce the overall Games-wide quota to 10,500 athletes, but our sport has grown so much over the last decade that a reduction of our quota would have been detrimental to the universality of our Olympic competitions.”
The equestrian events will be staged in the grounds of Versailles, with King Louis XIV’s Palace as a stunning backdrop at one of the French capital’s most iconic Games time venues. The UNESCO World Heritage Site will also be the site for Modern Pentathlon.
Full details of the Paris 2024 event program were publicly announced at a press conference with the IOC President today. The IOC press release is available on www.olympic.org.
The coveted Spirit Award, which originated from the USEA Intercollegiate Eventing Championship and quickly became as important as the competition itself, will be returning this year with double the excitement at the 2024 USEA Intercollegiate & Interscholastic Eventing Championships! With the two program championships merging for the first time, the organizing team at Stable View is committed to making the weekend an unforgettable experience for these middle school, high school, and undergraduate students. Separate Spirit Contests will be offered for each program , and Stable View has generously donated perpetual trophies for the two contest champions. The 2024 USEA Intercollegiate & Interscholastic Championships will be held at the Stable View Local Charities H.T. on May 4-5, 2024 in Aiken, SC. Click here to learn more and prepare to enter on opening day tomorrow, Tuesday, March 19!
Sometimes all it takes is a little luck on your side to make your dreams come true. We recently asked our USEA membership to share why they feel so lucky to be partnered with the horses they compete with, and we received over 100 heartwarming stories! We compiled some of our favorites below in celebration of today’s luck-themed holiday.
With Paris Olympic team selection this summer as a big goal, Liz Halliday headed out onto Ian Stark’s CCI4*-S cross-country course today at the Setters’ Run Farm Carolina International hoping to make the time with Miks Master C and show off a smooth round. After leading the division from day 1’s dressage on a 22.5, Halliday was able to accomplish both things and win aboard Ocala Horse Properties’ and Deborah Palmer’s 12-year-old Swedish Warmblood gelding (Mighty Magic x Qui Luma CBF).
The standings after today’s CCI4*-S show jumping at the Setters’ Run Farm Carolina International shuffled with 14 double-clear rounds out of 35 to start, but Liz Halliday stayed right where she was at the top of the leaderboard aboard Miks Master C.