Olympic Horses En Route to Rio

(ATR) The Olympic horses used in equestrian events will begin arriving in Rio de Janeiro at midnight Friday.

Compartir
Compartir articulo
Horses bound for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games are loaded on to an Emirates SkyCargo Boeing 777-F at London Stansted Airport. On the flight were 34 horses from 10 of the nations competing in Equestrian at Rio 2016 - 29 July 2016 - © FEI / Jon Stroud Media
Horses bound for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games are loaded on to an Emirates SkyCargo Boeing 777-F at London Stansted Airport. On the flight were 34 horses from 10 of the nations competing in Equestrian at Rio 2016 - 29 July 2016 - © FEI / Jon Stroud Media

(ATR) The Olympic horses used in equestrian events will begin to make their grand arrival in Rio de Janeiro at midnight Friday.

Around the Rings is told the first batch of 34 horses was delayed at the London Stansted Airport for about 20 minutes but that everything else is going according to plan. London is one of three locations that the horses will be flown out of along with the Miami-Dade Airport in Florida and the Liege freight airport in Belgium.

The approximately $22,000 round-trip flight for each horse is funded by the Rio 2016 organizing committee. Rio 2016 also covers the costs of the equestrian athletes at approximately $1,300 per ticket.

However, this was not always the case. It was not until the Sydney 2000 Summer Games that organizers began to cover the costs of all athletes, equine or human.

Today, each athlete’s National Olympic Committee and National Equestrian Federation still must cover the cost of additional expenses such as equipment, grooms and the transportation of any reserve horses.

The logistics of moving 233 horses from around the world to Rio is a tough task for Peden Bloodstock, a company specializing in horse transportation. Peden tells ATR the company has been the nominated equine logistics company for almost every Olympics since the 1968 Games in Mexico.

Peden is coordinating the transport of the Rio horses across 10 days leading up to the equestrian events that begin on Aug. 6.

"We have forged a strong working relationship with Rio 2016, MAPA [Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture]and the Brazilian authorities to ensure the smooth and swift transfer of all the horses, their equipment and feed to the Olympic Equestrian Centre," director of Peden Bloodstock Henry Bullen tells ATR.

The horses are accompanied on their flight by two professional grooms from Peden as well as a veterinarian to ensure the horses stay hydrated, fed and comfortable.

Once arriving in Rio, the horses will be transported to the Deodoro Olympic Equestrian Complex where each NOC qualified in equestrian will have designated barn blocks.

The equestrian events at Rio are divided into three disciplines: eventing, show jumping and dressage. Eventing will take place from Aug. 6-9, dressage from Aug. 10-12 and 15 and jumping will be contested on Aug. 14, 16, 17, and 19. Both the horses and the riders will earn an Olympic medal for placing in the top three of their respective events.

The Rio Olympics begin with the opening ceremony on Aug. 5 and come to a close on Aug. 21.

Written by Kevin Nutley

Forgeneral comments or questions, click here.

20 Years at #1: Your best source of news about theOlympics is AroundTheRings.com, for subscribersonly.

Recent Articles

The Friendship Games organized against Russia against the IOC will have the participation of 70 countries

The World Friendship Games (WFG) will feature competitions in 36 sports and will award 283 medals to the winners. The Russian Government announced that a press conference will soon be held to present them with more details and clarified that the invitations to participate are addressed to athletes and not to countries.
The Friendship Games organized against Russia against the IOC will have the participation of 70 countries

Clues about the pebetero: it will not be in the stadium but in the middle of Paris and in public view

From France, information indicates that the site chosen for the Olympic fire to be lit since July 26 would be the emblematic Tuileries Garden. Official sources did not confirm the fact, but they recognize the idea that it is located in the heart of Paris and in full view of fans.
Clues about the pebetero: it will not be in the stadium but in the middle of Paris and in public view

Nearly a thousand boats will welcome the torch in France

The parade in the Mediterranean will be minutes before disembarkation at the Old Port of Marseille; they must meet certain requirements and apply to participate.
Nearly a thousand boats will welcome the torch in France

France says it will “be ready” to ensure safety at the Olympic Games while raising the alert level

The attack in Moscow threatened the whole of Europe and security in Paris is once again in the spotlight, just four months after the parade of delegations on the Seine River.
France says it will “be ready” to ensure safety at the Olympic Games while raising the alert level

Will Paris 2024 have its red carpet?

Although all the expectations for July 26 are set on an opening ceremony that promises to be extraordinary, it is likely that, in the hour before the party, the world will attend a parade of luminaries from sports, arts and entertainment.
Will Paris 2024 have its red carpet?