Equestrian Australia High Performance Weekly Update – 8th March 2021

As we continue to draw closer to the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games our athletes remain positive in their outlook despite being faced with further challenges over the past week.

The recent outbreak of Equine Herpes Virus (EHV-1 – neurological form) detected in Valencia, Spain at an FEI event has since spread and has now been detected in France, Belgium, Germany, Sweden and Qatar. This devastatingly aggressive virus attacks the horses neurological system and has resulted in several fatalities. The FEI continue to collaborate with National Federations around the world in an attempt to curb the spread of the virus and minimise further exposure. To combat the transmission of the virus the FEI has enforced the cancellation of all international events in 10 countries on the European mainland with immediate effect until 28 March 2021. As our overseas-based athletes have been preparing their horses for Tokyo 2020 selection some of our identified riders had been participating in competitions where the virus has been detected. Our team remains in close contact with our athletes to ensure they are sufficiently supported during this unsettling time and to make sure they have access to the latest health and safety information available. We are relieved to confirm that to date no Australian horses have been infected by the EHV-1 virus and we are diligently following all safety measures and liaising with the relevant authorities to ensure our horses remain protected during transport home from events, and that further biosecurity measures are in place once they have entered quarantine back at their home stables.

Domestically there have been no cases of EHV-1 detected relating to the recent outbreak overseas and our riders continue their Tokyo 2020 preparations. The first FEI competition in Victoria for 2021 took place over the weekend at the Cardinia Shire Tonimbuk International Horse Trials which hosted CCI4/3/2*-S classes. The competition was the first CCI4*-S to take place in Australia this year as we enter the start of the Australian Eventing season and subsequently the Tokyo 2020 selection period. We continue to work closely with the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC), Paralympics Australia (PA) and the FEI to ensure progress is made in the review of all Australian selection policies. Each policy required further attention due to the modifications made by the FEI surrounding qualification and confirmation results for the postponed Games. Currently the policies are under review by the AOC and PA and we expect that further updates will soon be made available for our stakeholders surrounding their final release. 

The FEI World Endurance Championships for Senior Riders will take place this year in San Rossore, Italy from 21-22 May and we are therefore seeking expressions of interest from riders who meet the FEI qualification criteria and would like to be considered for team selection. In addition we are also seeking expressions of interest for a Chef d’Equipe for the team. For further information, qualification criteria and application forms please click here.

As always the health and safety of our people and horses remain our priority as we work together as a high-performance community to navigate these unprecedented times.