Jumping, Dressage Riders Clubs Sign MOUs with FEI The International Jumping Riders Club (IJRC) and the International Dressage Riders Club (IDRC), which together represent the world’s top athletes in those sports, have signed memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI). The two organizations, formerly FEI Associate Members, will work closely with the FEI to expand the Olympic disciplines of jumping and dressage. The number of jumping events has grown by 20% since 2010, and dressage events have grown by 28% in the same period; more than 1,300 jumping and 450 dressage events took place in more than 70 countries last year alone. The IJRC, founded in 1977 by a group of 25 international jumping riders—including David Broome, Raimondo D’Inzeo, Paul Schockomöhle, and Nelson Pessoa—is under the direction of Eleonora Ottaviani Moroni (SUI-ITA). The organization represents over 250 of the world’s best jumping athletes, which have competed at Olympic, world championship, and FEI Nations Cup level, as well as the top athletes in the FEI World Jumping Rankings—now the Longines Rankings. The IJRC also represents the North American Riders Group. “Our club strongly believes that the cooperation between our riders, event organizers and the governing body for our sport—the FEI—is key in bringing equestrian sport to a higher level,” said Olympic jumper Christina Liebherr (SUI), who was appointed as the IJRC’s first woman president in August 2013. “This is the start of a new way of working with the FEI and the athletes we represent, as we focus on the global development of jumping.” Dressage world number one Charlotte Dujardin (GBR) and Valegro claimed double gold at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games 2014 in Normandy, France. The IDRC, founded in 1986, is the voice of almost 600 dressage athletes around the world, with President Kyra Kyrklund (FIN) and six active Olympic dressage athletes on its board. “This is an exciting new chapter for the IDRC as we represent more and more dressage athletes thanks to the rapid growth of the sport,” Kyrklund said. “We now have a formal agreement with the FEI that recognizes the IDRC as the sole international organisation representing the views and interests of international dressage riders, and our athletes fully understand the weight of this agreement.” FEI Secretary General Ingmar De Vos added, “Our athletes are the lifeblood of our sport, and the FEI’s collaboration with the International Jumping and Dressage Riders Clubs helps to ensure that we all have our fingers on the pulse of the sport and fully understand the views of our athletes on the future of two of our most popular disciplines. “These new relationships underline the importance of collaborating with our athletes and represent a very important step as jumping and dressage continue to grow in all four corners of the world,” he added. Dressage world number one Charlotte Dujardin (GBR) and Valegro claimed double gold at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games 2014 in Normandy, France.
Posted on: Fri, 10 Oct 2014 07:27:08 +0000
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