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Pan
American Games Dressage Selection Trials to Highlight
13th Annual Bayer/USET Festival of Champions, Presented
by State Line Tack
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Gladstone, NJ—March 26, 2003— The 2003 Bayer/United
States Equestrian Team (USET) Festival of Champions, Presented
by State Line Tack, will host the Pan American Games dressage
selection trials, June 19-22 at the USET Olympic Training Center
in Gladstone, NJ.
The
USET Intermediaire Championship at the Festival will serve as
the selection trials to choose the horses and riders who will
represent the United States in dressage at the 2003 Pan American
Games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, August 7-10.
To qualify for the trials, horses and riders competed in a series
of qualifying events throughout the winter and spring.
The Intermediaire competition promises to be intense as the top
12 horse-and-rider combinations vie for the right to be on the
four-rider squad that will represent the United States at the
2003 Pan American Games.
In
addition to the Intermediaire Championship, the Dressage Division
at the Festival will also feature the USET Grand Prix Championship,
qualifiers for the North American Young Riders’ Championships
to be held in August in Bromont, Quebec, and the National Disability
Sports Alliance (NDSA) Championship for Riders with Disabilities.
The NDSA Championship will serve as the final selection trial
for the team that will represent the U.S. at the World Championships
for Riders with Disabilities to be held in Belgium in September.
Along
with dressage competition, the ballet of equestrian sports, the
Festival will feature the power and speed of show jumping. The
Show Jumping Division will be highlighted by the $50,000 Rolex/USET
Show Jumping Championship, a member event of the American Grandprix
Association (AGA), and the USET Junior and Amateur-Owner Talent
Derbies, both presented by BET on Jazz and both part of the Show
Jumping Hall of Fame Jumper Classic Series.
The
2003 Festival will again host the USET Endurance 75-Mile Championship,
a Fédération Equestre Internationale (International
Equestrian Federation – FEI)-sanctioned CEI** ride. The ride
will take place in and around the USET grounds.
The
Bayer Reining Division returns, the fifth consecutive year the
Festival will feature reining. Teams of reiners from several countries
will compete in the COSEQUIN® CRIO Nations’ Cup. Riders
from all over the nation will vie for the prestigious USET Reining
Championship, presented by Bayer. The reining ring will also feature
the USET Futures Championship and the Reining Young Rider Medal
Final, which holds qualifying classes at reining competitions
throughout the country over the course of the year-long qualifying
period. These competitions award points to the top placing riders.
At the end of the year, the top point-earning Young Riders are
invited to compete in Gladstone at the finals.
In addition to top-level equestrian competition, spectators will
be able to enjoy a day of family fun and entertainment. A wide
range of gourmet dining options as well as a country fair will
complement the equestrian activities taking place in three rings.
The fair will feature equine demonstrations, falconry and blacksmith
demonstrations, the Jersey Fresh Horse Expo, as well as vendors
offering top-quality jewelry, souvenirs, and products for the
home as well as the stable.
General admission will be ten dollars for adults and five dollars
for children under the age of twelve. Children under the age of
six will again be admitted free of charge. There will be free
admission for all spectators on Thursday, June 19.
The United States Equestrian Team is a non-profit organization
that selects, trains, equips and finances equestrians of the highest
possible standard to represent our country in major international
competition, including the Olympic Games and the World Championships.
To accomplish this, the USET seeks out and nurtures the development
of talented athletes - riders, drivers and horses - and provides
the support and guidance they need to help them attain their fullest
potential. For more information on the USET, please call (908)
234-1251, or visit USET ONLINE at www.uset.org
.
