USA Dressage Team Scraps European Tour Before Olympics, Opts for Head-to-Head Wellington Competition in Tokyo-Like Conditions of Heat at Night

The United States dressage team has scrapped plans to go to Europe ahead of the Olympics and instead hold a head-to-head night time competition of up to 12 combinations in Wellington in June when conditions will be similar to what’s expected in Tokyo, hot and humid.

The competition June 8-12 of Grand Prix and Grand Prix Special to music–a format identical to Tokyo–will be in the main International arena at the jumping venue of the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center, according to plans announced Wednesday by the U.S. Equestrian Federation.

It is mandatory for all short listed combinations.

The announcement comes after months of uncertainty over the European competition calendar because of the coronavirus pandemic now in its second year and the Equine Herpes Virus that has closed competitions from February through to mid-April.

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Article written by: KENNETH J. BRADDICK