Beginning of the end for CCIs?
All future FEI eventing championships will be run under the new CCI short-format if proposals by the FEI eventing committee are approved later this year.
The FEI eventing committee is recommending that all FEI championships, including senior, young rider, junior and regional events, will follow the new short-format. The only exception to the rule will be the World Equestrian Games, which will retain the option of running the traditional long-format CCI if organisers choose to.
If the FEI Bureau rubber-stamp the proposals in December, then the CCI short-format will be introduced in time for next year’s championships.
The proposed CCI short-format will take place across three days, similar to the traditional CCI (long-format), but will not include the roads and tracks or steeplechae sections. Rules are expected to be similar to current CCIs and will include compulsory horse inspections, with show jumping retained as the final phase.
The traditional three-day CCI, with the full speed and endurance phase, will be redefined as CCI long-format eventing. The current CIC definition (one-day event) remains unaffected by the changes.
The committee is currently finalising the technical specifications, qualifications and other related issues associated with these changes, but if their recommendations are approved the changes are expected to be fully operational by 2005.
- For an in-depth examination of the FEI’s proposals, plus feedback from top names associated with the sport, don’t miss next Thursday’s issue of Horse & Hound (9 October).
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Carol is an experienced journalist and editor, who is also a passionate amateur rider and dedicated horse owner, having ridden since childhood. She has a particular interest in the emotional well-being and ethical training of horses, alongside veterinary matters, having garnered extensive first-hand experience of numerous equine health conditions through more than 30 years of horse ownership.