Lexington, KY – Continuing with preparations for the 2012 Olympic Games, the United States Equestrian Team Foundation (USET) and United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) kicked off 2012 with two training sessions for Dressage Olympic hopefuls. Betsy Juliano graciously opened the doors of her Havensafe Farm South to riders in Wellington, FL, January 6-8. The following weekend, Steffen Peters hosted a session for West coast riders at his Arroyo Del Mar farm in San Diego, CA. Also taking place in California, the first USEF Developing Dressage Clinic of 2012 was held at Epona Farms, owned by Michael and Linda Fowler in Thousand Oaks, CA.
The USET/USEF pre-Olympic Games clinics, made possible by a gift from Betsy Juliano to the USET Foundation, featured instruction from USEF Technical Advisor and Coach Anne Gribbons and Olympian Steffen Peters. At the Florida clinic were seven horses (six riders) including 2011 Pan American Games Team Gold and Individual Silver medalists Heather Blitz and Paragon. Over three days the combinations worked with Peters and Gribbons individually, rode the Olympic Grand Prix Special and reviewed video of the tests with Gribbons.
Wellington, FL – January 30, 2012 – The FTI Consulting Winter Equestrian Festival finished its third week of competition with success for hunter, jumpers, and equitation riders. The third week of the FTI WEF was sponsored by Horseware Ireland. The fourth week, sponsored by Adequan, is on February 1-5. The 2012 FTI Winter Equestrian Festival has 12 weeks of competition that conclude on April 1, 2012, and they will be awarding more than $6 million in prize money through the circuit.
