ANNUAL REPORT 2007 ANNUAL REPORT 2007 FOREWORD BY THE FEI PRESIDENT The world in which we seek to steer a course for modern protect the future of Jumping. The resulting dialogue was an horsesport is changing fast and it was against that backdrop active demonstration of the new status quo. that the scenery of horsesport moved, once again, and to great effect in 2007. As an athlete I had watched the growth of the Global Champions Tour prior to my election, and understood that It is testament to the strength of Para-Equestrian that although its creation did not happen in a vacuum. It was the obvious it only joined the FEI in 2006, it has already become a vital and inevitable answer to a cluttered commercial landscape and vibrant member of the FEI family. The hosting of the fi rst in that discipline. This question of the balance between the ever FEI World Para-Equestrian Dressage Championships at commercial and competitive needs of horsesport is a live Hartpury (GBR) in July 2007 marked a historic moment for debate that will take time and determination to resolve. equestrian sport not only because of its fi rst running but also for the manner in which it was run. The work of the team to But as the commercial mapping process continues, it was keep the competition going, despite freak weather conditions, important to see the FEI World Cup™ Jumping series, one of was exceptional. I was particularly touched to hear that the the FEI’s key commercial products, further strengthened by riders in the CDI had volunteered to cancel their competition the announcement of its partnership with Rolex. realising the importance of the Championship to the Para- Equestrian competitors. Let us ensure that this spirit of Fair In Arabic they say “What is learned in youth is carved in Play and recognition of each other’s needs as athletes is never stone” and the awarding of the fi rst ever FEI license to a game lost in horsesport. developer and distributor was, I believe, of signifi cance both on a commercial level and for the future marketing of the sport. The infl uence of Para-Equestrian is reaching out across the FEI and I was particularly delighted that Lee Pearson was elected The award to Atari lead to the development and launch in Chairman of the fi rst ever FEI Athletes Committee and to Autumn 2007 of My Horse and Me, a video game featuring have attended its inaugural meeting at FEI HQ in August. sport of the fi nest kind and lifestyle experiences at a level The establishment of this committee not only provides the of detail and authenticity never seen before in this gaming athletes with a voice but also serves as an omnipresent genre. reminder that without our athletes, there is no sport. We know that engaging with youth is one of the greatest The athletes from Jumping served to remind the FEI that challenges facing all sport and to have the capacity to their voice is a reasonable, responsible and visionary one take horsesport to the gaming audience has given us the when the FEI and the Global Champions Tour were brought opportunity to talk directly to both the athletes and fans of together in September by brave athletes who wished to horsesport in this and future generations of young people. FEI ANNUAL REPORT 2007 05 Youth is the lifeblood of our sport and we celebrate it here in this publication. Success may be achieved at a later age than in many sports but if we do not generate interest in children and young people we will not maintain the pipeline of talent which will provide the Olympians of tomorrow. Very few sports want to admit it but their viewership and membership is ageing. Young people are raised in a society which delivers them instant gratifi cation, they don’t want complicated sport, it is part of an alien culture to train for ten years in the hope of achieving some far distant medal. They want six-hour success. Their entertainment choices are very cluttered but we must make sure that we are a loud voice in a noisy room and that we plan our sport with our future audience in mind. My visit to the Good Luck Beijing - HKSAR 10th Anniversary Cup (Test Event) in Hong Kong was a reminder of the extraordinary opportunity presented by the Olympics in presenting horsesport to the audience of Hong Kong and mainland China. I was delighted to be able to share with IOC President Jacques Rogge the excellent plans established between BOCOG and the FEI with great support from The Hong Kong Jockey Club. The Benchmarking study undertaken towards the end of 2007 gives us a clearer idea of the position of the FEI against other International Governing Bodies. There is much still to do but I felt the fi ndings were encouraging and in some areas surprisingly positive. Because I am very keen that our stakeholders should reach their own conclusions on the report, I do not intend to evidence my comments here. I would, however, like to highlight the areas relating to governance as these are germane to this review of the FEI’s performance during 2007. By comparison with other International Governing Bodies the report demonstrates that we are the leading International Governing Body for the democratic representation of athletes and as an International Sports Federation I think we should be delighted with this news. In addition, we have already achieved the IOC’s goal of at least 20% of women on decision-making bodies and we have the highest percentage of women in our decision-making bodies of any International Governing Body. Finally I would like to close by saying how enormously grateful I am for the support I receive from a very committed Volunteer Body and from a strong, creative, and hard-working Executive Team. They both continue to confront the issues facing horsesport, in the fi rst decade of the 21st century, with energy and a constructive attitude and are carrying out a programme of reform that will ensure the future of horsesport well into the 22nd century. HRH Princess Haya 06 FEI ANNUAL REPORT 2007 CONTENTS FOREWORD BY THE FEI PRESIDENT, HRH PRINCESS HAYA 05 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE YEAR 2007 FEI General Assembly 09 FEI World Championships 10 FEI Continental Championships 11 FEI Continental & Regional Games 14 FEI Regional Championships 16 FEI World Breeding Championships for Young Horses 17 Top Ten Final 17 FEI Children’s International Jumping Final 18 FEI World Cup™ Finals 18 Samsung Super League with FEI and FEI Nations Cup 19 REPORT BY THE FEI SECRETARY GENERAL 20 FEI CORPORATE ACTIVITIES FEI COMMITTEES Audit and Compliance Committee 22 Nominations Committee 22 Athletes Committee 22 Jumping Committee 22 Dressage Committee 23 Eventing Committee 24 Driving Committee 25 Endurance Committee 25 Vaulting Committee 26 Reining Committee 26 Para-Equestrian Committee 26 Pony Riders Committee 26 Children’s Committee 26 Veterinary Committee 27 FEI Tribunal 27 FEI REGIONAL GROUPS 28 SPORT DEVELOPMENT 30 FEI SEMINARS AND COURSES 38 OTHER ACTIVITIES FEI Commercial Department 44 Public Relations 46 FINANCIAL RESULTS 49 RESULTS AND STATISTICS FEI Championships and Games : Participation and Results 52 International Events Organised by the National Federations (NFs) 73 Number of Events by Discipline 76 FEI BUREAU AND STAFF 80 IMPRESSUM 82 08 FEI ANNUAL REPORT 2007 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE YEAR 2007 FEI GENERAL ASSEMBLY Estoril (POR), 12-16 April 1 The idyllic setting of the 2007 FEI General Assembly; Estoril, Portugal 2 The FEI President with 1st Vice President Sven Holmberg (SWE) and Bureau member, Alain Guillet (SUI) during a break at the 2007 FEI General Assembly 3 The FEI President presenting Jacques Schoufour (NED) with the FEI Special Recognition for Outstanding Services 1 2 3 4 Giacomo Muccioli (ITA) receiving the FEI Special Recognition Award for Outstanding Services on behalf of the San Patrignano Community 5 Sir Philippe Craven, President of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), during his speech at the Welcome Dinner hosted by the Portuguese National Federation 4 5 FEI ANNUAL REPORT 2007 09 FEI WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS 1 Member of the winning German team, Rudolf Huber at the FEI World Driving Pairs Championship in Warka (POL) 2 Complete exaltation as Jan de Boer (NED) is declared the new pony, four-in hand World Champion at the FEI World Driving Combined Pony Championship, Dorthealyst (DEN) 3 Individual pairs gold medallist, Vilmos Lazar (HUN) at the FEI World Driving Pairs Championship in Warka, Poland 4 Lars Dau (DEN), the pairs bronze medallist at the FEI World Driving Combined Pony Championship 1 2 3 4 5 Rudi Kronsteiner (AUT) aboard Smart Spook, winners of the 2007 FEI World Reining Masters Final in Oklahoma (USA) 6 Nothing but gold for Lee Pearson (GBR) & Altino at the FEI World Para-Equestrian Dressage Championships in Hartpury (GBR), winning individual Grade 1b and also member of the winning team – Great Britain 7 Grade IV World Champion, Ann Cathrin Lubbe (NOR) & Zanko at the FEI World Para-Equestrian Dressage Championships here congratulated by Mrs Jonquil Solt OBE, FEI Para-Equestrian Committee Chairman 8 A lap of honour for Manuela Antonaccio (URU) and Metiche, winners of the World Endurance Young Rider and Junior Championships held at Campo de Mayo in Argentina 5 6 7 8 10 FEI ANNUAL REPORT 2007 FEI CONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIPS 1 A historic victory for The Netherlands as they step up to claim gold at the FEI European Dressage Championship held at La Mandria (ITA) from 30 August to 2 September 2 A familiar smile as Isabelle Werth (GER) and Satchmo 78 are crowned 2007 FEI European Dressage Grand Prix Special Champions 3 An awe inspiring performance confi rmed