11th Hour Horse Trading With Top Olympic Horses

It seems the holiday season wasn't quite as carefree as the last week in December usually is, for Olympic Games horse owners and competitors, with some major decisions being made!

The FEI rules state that "Horses entered for the Equestrian Events at the Olympic Games must have been registered with FEI as property of owners of the same nationality as the Athlete, by 31 December 2011".

So as the end of 2011 and with the FEI deadline fast approaching, several 11th hour deals were struck! 

The Telegraph.co.uk has reported it was win-some, lose-some for British show jumping; home furnishing magnates Lord Harris and Lord Kirkham purchased a top Ukraine horse for British 2010 World Equestrian Games (WEG) team-member Scott Brash, adding to the pool of Olympic prospects they have already secured for Tina Fletcher and Laura Renwick.

But Britain’s best-placed jumper at WEG is heading overseas. On Christmas Eve, Robert Smith’s top horse Talan (pictured) was provisionally transferred to Saudi Arabia, with the sale confirmed when the Kingdom belatedly qualified for London 2012 on December 30.

Quick Links

• Read about more Olympic horse trading at Telegraph.co.uk
• Read a report about horses changing hands at www.horseandcountry.tv

Photo: FEI Photos