Summer Olympics add importance to 2024 Winter Equestrian Festival, Palm Beach County competitors
WELLINGTON — The Winter Equestrian Festival that begins Wednesday at Wellington International always takes on added importance in an Olympic year.
The 2024 Summer Olympics will be hosted by Paris July 26-August 11, spread over 16 cities across France. The magnificent grounds of the Palace of Versailles is the equestrian venue.
If equestrian fans can't afford the ticket prices and hotels in Paris, WEF will provide a free sneak preview of athletes and horses expected to compete.
Most of the sport's top show jumpers, including 2020 Tokyo team silver medalists Laura Kraut of Royal Palm Beach, McLain Ward, Jessica Springsteen and alternate Kent Farrington of Wellington, head a Who's Who of show jumpers and world-class horses for WEF, the longest-running equestrian event in the world. Those Olympics actually were held in the summer of 2021 due to COVID.
Six countries have qualified teams to participate in every equestrian sport at the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics, and 21 have qualified at least one team, according to a recent update from the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI).
The six countries who have qualified in all four disciplines—jumping, dressage, eventing and para-dressage—are Sweden, Germany, Great Britain, Belgium, Netherlands and France, as host country.
The U.S. show jumping team punched its ticket to Paris by winning a gold medal in November at the Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile. Ward, Kraut, Farrington and Karl Cook secured the team spot.
“I think there was a huge sense of relief with the team’s finish," said U.S. Chef d’Equipe Robert Ridland after the Pan Am Games. "We really brought this down to the wire in terms of qualification and the team produced. For us, this gold is just the icing on top because our priority was to secure our qualification, so now the team can enjoy this moment, but we have to immediately start shifting our focus and planning to Paris.”
The U.S. Olympic team selection will essentially be based on who is highest on the ranking list and who Ridland thinks is doing best at various events, including WEF.
Among international stars expected to compete are reigning Olympic gold medalist Ben Maher of Great Britain; Bertram Allen, Cian O'Connor and Shane Sweetnam of Ireland; Nayel Nassar of Egypt and Daniel Bluman and Ashlee Bond of Israel.
The Global Equestrian Group's show grounds open Wednesday and will feature 13 weeks of competition, including 12 FEI classes. Four weeks will be highlighted by five-star competition, including the $500,000 Rolex Grand Prix CSI5 during Week 12. Saturday Night Lights will showcase featured grand prixes.
The WCHR Hunter Spectacular is returning during Week Six along with the Under-25 Grand Prix Series throughout the circuit and the WEF Equitation Championship during Week 11. WEF is the world's largest and most enduring hunter/jumper horse event in North America.
There is also the Adequan Global Dressage Festival at the Equestrian Village with its Friday Night Stars, featuring a Grand Prix Freestyle, the highlight of the week's competition.
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Since it started in Wellington in 1974, WEF has expanded to 500 acres, including 80 acres for 18 state-of-the-art competition arenas, the main International Arena and 400 permanent equine stalls.
The facility has gone through upgrades and changes for both competitors and fans, including ringside shade structures; a new media center; bridle-path surfaces with great footing; digital boards in the International Arena; a streamlined ticketing process; new Saturday Night Lights parking check-in system; and an online Wellington International shop.
2024 WEF Schedule
Wednesday-Sunday, $75,000 Prestige Italia Grand Prix, Battle of the Sexes.
Jan. 10-14, Southern Arches CSI3, $140,000 Southern Arches Grand Prix.
Jan. 16-21, Keyflow Feeds USA CSI3, $140,000 Keyflow Feeds USA Grand Prix.
Jan. 23-28, NetJets CSI4, $215,000 NetJets Grand Prix CSI4.
Jan. 31-Feb. 4, MARS Equestrian CSI4, $215,000 MARS Equestrian Grand Prix CSI4, 16th Great Charity Challenge.
Feb. 6-11, Fidelity Investments CSI5, $116,000 Adequan WEF Challenge Round, $385,000 Fidelity Investments Grand Prix CSI5.
Feb. 13-18, KASK CSI3, $140,000 KASK Grand Prix CSI3, $100,000 USHJA/WCHR Peter Wetherill Hunter Spectacular.
Feb. 20-25, Lugano Diamonds CSI5, $116,100 Adequan WEF Challenge Round, $385,000 Lugano Diamonds Grand Prix CSI5.
Feb. 27-March 3, Florida Coast Equipment CSI4, $200,000 JTWG Inc. Grand Prix CSI4, $150,000 Nations Cup CSI4.
March 5-10, Bainbridge Companies CSI5, $116,100 Adequan WEF Challenge Round, $385,000 Bainbridge Companies Grand Prix CSI5.
March 12-17, Horseware Ireland CSI4, $215,000 Horseware Ireland Grand Prix CSI4, $50,000 Brain Juice Under-25 Grand Prix Final.
March 19-24, IDA Development CSI4, $200,000 IDA Development Grand Prix CSI4, $150,000 Hermes 1.50-meter Series Final, $50,000 USHJA International Hunter Derby; 17th WEF Equitation Championship.
March 26-31, Rolex CSI5, $500,000 Rolex Grand Prix CSI5, $117,000 Adequan WEF Challenge Round.Wellington International, 3400 Equestrian Club Drive, 561-793-5867. General admission is free and parking is $20 per car.
Adequan Global Dressage Festival
2024 Dressage Friday Night StarsJan. 12, World Cup Qualifier; Jan. 26, CDI4.
Feb. 9, World Cup Qualifier.
Feb. 23, Nation's Cup.
March 1, Palm Beach Derby.
March 15, CDI5 (at Wellington International).
March 29, CDI4.
Equestrian Village, 13500 South Shore Blvd. General admission is free, parking $20 per car.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Winter Equestrian Festival sneak preview of potential Paris Olympic riders, horses
