The largest commercial airlift of horses ever undertaken in the history of horse sport has begun ahead of the FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2018, which get underway in North Carolina on the 11th of September.
FEI-Horse arrivals in South Carolina
The FEI World Equestrian Games Tryon 2018 will see human and equine athletes compete September 11-23 for 29 medals in the Olympic disciplines.
© 2018 by FEI/Tori Repole
The FEI World Equestrian Games™ Tryon 2018 will see human and equine athletes compete from 11-23 September for 29 medals in the Olympic disciplines of Eventing, Jumping and Dressage, the Paralympic sport of Para-Dressage, alongside Driving, Endurance, Reining and Vaulting.
The first 67 of a total 550 supremely fit airborne equine athletes have now set foot - or should that be hoof - on the Tryon International Equestrian Center venue, nine days before the start of one of the biggest sporting events on US soil this year.
They will join a further 270 horses coming overland to team up with their human partners from over 70 countries at these Games, which are world championships in all of the FEI's eight disciplines and qualifiers for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The horses will be flying into the USA on a total of 23 flights from Liège (BEL) and Dubai (UAE), plus flights from 11 South American cities including Buenos Aires (ARG), Sao Paolo (BRA), Santiago (CHI), Lima (PER), Montevideo (URU) and San José (CRC).
"This is the largest commercial airlift of horses in history, with only wartime shipments of horses coming close, so the military precision involved in the logistics is incredible," FEI President Ingmar De Vos said. "These horses are finely-tuned equine athletes and are not only very valuable, but they must arrive in peak competition condition, just like their human counterparts."
The freight carried from Europe alone - not including the horses themselves - will total 123,500 (123,500 tonnes) of equipment, ranging from saddles, bridles, rugs and grooming kits, wheelbarrows and pitch forks, to horse shoes and all-terrain studs, as well as 51,000 kilos (51 tonnes) of feed, in-flight snacks and 20 litres of water per horse.
Kevin Howell, Senior Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer for GSP: "Today's a little different, because this is four-legged cargo, we don't move a lot of that. Actually our first equine charter was the test flight earlier this spring. The team is very focused on moving the horses safely, and keeping the horses in the best health and spirits for the competition."
After touchdown at GSP, the first equine arrivals are transferred directly onto trucks - without setting foot on South Carolina tarmac - for the 82km (50-mile) journey to Tryon, crossing over the state line into North Carolina with its stunning Blue Ridge Mountains backdrop.
Edited Press Release