“Heels Down Magazine shared a video of a press conference Friday in which FEI authorities said that of the 95 horses that started the endurance competition, 53 needed veterinary treatment, including 32 that required IV fluids.”
I would really like to know where the 42 horses who didn’t need veterinary attention came from. Anyone know?
This was a trainwreck but hopefully there’s something to be learned from the ones that didn’t end up in the veterinary tents.
Well the French team are furious, so obviously their horses weren’t pulled given the French team’s statement:
This decision punishes all the horses who have been paced correctly and whose riders took into account terrain and weather conditions. All those who were still competing with us were in very good condition. Everybody saw that when they returned. Riders who respect and listen to their horses are being punished, and those who do not are being rewarded by the decision to cancel the competition because they couldn’t place in it anymore…It’s outrageous, unacceptable and a scandal. Our collective uprising was clear enough, I think. Unfortunately, I fear that this signals the end of Endurance. We can’t go on like this.
Totally agree.
"The riders who appeared most upset were on teams positioned to medal. Despite the weather and trail conditions, their horses were still passing the vet checks.
“I do agree they had to cancel it because people were riding faster than they should have been. It wasn’t the weather at all,” said Reynolds. "When they scheduled this race, they knew this was going to be the weather; you could have looked at the weather for this area in the last 10 years and known it would be like this. That wasn’t the reason. Otherwise why would they host the race in the first place?
“Cancelling the ride penalized the riders that were pacing correctly,” Reynolds continued. “They were still in the race with healthy horses.” "
So the stupid majority caused the race to be cancelled. Unbelievable. What is wrong with people these days? Google brain? Unthinking Gadget heads?
Sadly the New Zealand Team lost one of theirs. 
http://www.chronofhorse.com/article/horse-euthanized-following-weg-endurance
Weren’t there some Spanish riders still in contention towards the end? They seemed to be pretty hot under the collar.
A couple of friends from the endurance world were discussing finish percentages in general - it is very common for only about 50% of starters to reach the finish line with the remainder retiring/being pulled. (‘To finish is to win’). Fwiw
.
Even at the top levels? It seems like the best in the world should be able to do a little better.
Yes, the Spanish demanded they get the medals as they completed not knowing it has been cancelled. Denied, of course, with the absurd statement that all the horses have to be protected, not just the elite.
Isn’t that the point of competition though … to find and reward the best, who paced their horses correctly?
This was just an absolute b**s up!
And which countries were the pulled horses from?
All I know is not France and not Spain as they lodged complaints.
I would love to know which countries were pulled!
I believe the rumor mill said that all of the UAE horses were pulled.
Yes, and I heard that the UAE were responsible for setting the racing stampede pace that brought so many down.
I believe the person who posted all the live videos from the endurance day was connected to the UAE team.
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