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The Equestrian Grand Final Qualifying Series Heads to Toowoomba

Published on Friday, August 5, 2011 in General

 

Olivia Hamood - one of the young riders who will contest the Toowoomba CSI-W - it's also Olivia's birthday today! Happy Birthday Olivia! (Photo: EA/Direct Shots Photography   Story: EA)

Australia's leading jumping riders will converge on Toowoomba this week to compete at the Toowoomba World Cup Showjumping Championships.

Sunday’s World Cup class is the third of five Jumping qualifiers for the inaugural Equestrian Grand Final to be held 10-13 November at EQUITANA Sydney.  The top three combinations will gain automatic qualification for the final. 

The Equestrian Grand Final, a multi-discipline event will also feature Australia’s leading Dressage and Eventing riders – bringing together the best of the best.
“I will be aiming to ride at Equitana,” said World Equestrian Games representative Chris Chugg. “I am looking forward to the Grand Final.”
Sunday’s FEI World Cup class in Toowoomba has 25 entries including the most accomplished names in Australian Jumping such as Chris Chugg and Vicki Roycroft.  However, a highly talented group of emerging riders including 19-year-old Olivia Hamood and 18-year-old 2010 Youth Olympic medallist Tom McDermott will challenge the veterans.
“There is a new crop of riders and horses in the field this year,” commented course designer Graeme Watts.
It will be a very competitive class as there are no clear standout combinations that will dominate.”
The Toowoomba World Cup class also serves a partial qualifier for the 2012 Olympic Games. Referred to as an MES (Minimum Eligibility Standard) class, riders must achieve a clear round at two different MES classes in order to gain eligibility to ride at next year’s Games.
“The course plan has been approved by the FEI as an MES and I will be building the track to the required standard,” said Watts. “There will be 1.60m verticles and the rest of the course will be a solid 1.50m. The goal is for as many riders to gain their Olympic eligibility as possible." 
“Toowoomba is a great show,” said Chugg. It has a very nice grass surface and I will be starting two nice mares in the World Cup Class, Alondra and Vigo. My goal is to gain my MES so the pressure is off later in the year.”
Numbers at this year’s show are better than ever, despite the Hendra virus.
“Hendra has kept a few competitors away,” said Watts “but most riders are not concerned about transmission of the virus at the show. It is quite difficult to transmit the disease, a horse needs a lot of direct contact with the virus so there is a very low risk of infection at this venue,” explained Graeme.
Whilst Hendra has not adversely affected the show, the January floods have taken their toll. Sponsorship is down.  “Money that businesses would normally have invested has been donated to the flood appeal,” said Watts.  “Yet the committee has still managed to offer a prize pool of $23,000 across the four days of competition, and the riders are grateful for that.”
Following Toowoomba there will be two more FEI World Cup qualifiers in Queensland, Brisbane on 17 August and Caboolture 21 August before the circuit heads to South Australia.
Keep up to date with the Equestrian Grand Final leader boards HERE and the World Cup (Australian league) results, course plans and schedule HERE.

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