China’s Global Champions Tour plans put on hold

Plans for the Global Champions Tour (GCT) in Shanghai this year have been put on hold after attempts to ease China’s stringent quarantine laws stalled.

The GCT was scheduled for October 2012. But senior sources in the Chinese equestrian governing bodies advise that the plan has been pushed back to 2013.

GCT founder Jan Tops told H&H at the GCT in Cannes he is positive it will happen.

“Financially, the show is secured, but the quarantine issues, unfortunately, are out of our hands,” he said. “The government has to make a new law – as you saw at the 2008 Olympics – horses had to go to Hong Kong instead of China.

They are aware that this could open up a huge market for them and they need to do it because they want to compete over here, too.”

This news story was first published in the current issue of H&H (21 June 2012)

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