Bologna, September 12, 2023 – Italy is ready to take the continental scene once again. This week, from 13 to 17 September, the most eagerly awaited youth eventing date on the FEI 2023 international calendar – the Young Riders and Junior European Championships – will be in the spotlight.
The Centro Militare di Equitazione (Horse Riding Military Centre) at Montelibretti, a model facility on the outskirts of northern Rome and repository of the military sporting equestrian traditions in Italy, will be the most appropriate host for such a prestigious event.
The Scuola di Cavalleria dell’Esercito Italiano (Italian Army Cavalry Military School) celebrates its 200th anniversary this year. The organisation of the Championships in a venue that since its foundation witnessed the growth of many athletes who have competed wearing the Italian Army uniform, is therefore a significant part of the celebration for the anniversary.
The participation of horse and rider combinations from as many as 19 countries signs a huge success.
12 official team will represent their nations in the Juniors Championship and 7 more pairs will compete as individuals. In the Young Riders Championship, the official teams will instead be 9 and the individuals 4, for a total of 13 flags.
Click HERE for the Young Riders entry master list and HERE for the Junior entry master list
The Centro Militare di Equitazione facilities are ready to welcome for the second time 123 horses and an equal number of riders, who represent the future élite of eventing.
In fact, in 2016 Montelibretti hosted a successful edition of the Fei European Eventing Youth Championship in which, for the first time in Italy, Juniors and Young Riders competitions were scheduled simultaneously.
The first horses arrived in Montelibretti’s stables yesterday, on Sunday. The competitions will begin on Thursday, 14 September, with the first section of the dressage test, but the programme actually opens as early as Wednesday 13th, with the horse inspection and the opening ceremony with the spectacular demonstration of the parachutists from the Centro Sportivo dell’Esercito di Pisa (Parachuting Section of the Army Sport Centre) in Pisa.
Once they have landed, the four parachutists will hand over the flags that will be hoisted on the flagpoles of the competition ground, accompanied by the music of the Banda della Scuola trasporti e Materiali dell’Esercito (Army Transport and Logistics School Musical Band).