2022 Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event Will Host Para Dressage And Para Jumping Demonstrations

The Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by MARS Equestrian (LRK3DE) will host demonstrations in Para Dressage and Para Jumping when it returns to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, April 28-May 1, 2022.

Organized by Equestrian Events Inc. (EEI), the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event presented by MARS Equestrian™ features one of only seven annual Five Star three-day events in the world as well as the $225,000 Kentucky CSI3* Invitational Grand Prix presented by Hagyard Equine Medical Institute. Known as “The Best Weekend All Year,” the event annually attracts more than 80,000 spectators who also enjoy extensive shopping, a variety of hospitality experiences and a wide array of demonstrations.

This year's demonstrations will include Para Dressage, the only equestrian sport in the Paralympic Games, and the emerging sport of Para Jumping. Working with EEI in organizing the demonstrations are Para Dressage rider Rebecca Hart, who has competed in four consecutive Paralympic Games, and Wren Blae Zimmerman, a blind Jumping rider who competes in USEF-recognized competitions and has the ultimate goal of helping Jumping become a Paralympic sport.

“We are incredibly excited to host demonstrations in both Para Dressage and Para Jumping,” said Mike Cooper, president of the board of Equestrian Events, Inc. (EEI). “What Rebecca Hart and Wren Blae Zimmerman do as riders is incredibly impressive and an inspiration to anyone faced with physical or other challenges. We are thrilled to join with them in presenting demonstrations of their sports at our event!

Each demonstration will feature 2-3 riders and demonstrations in both disciplines will be held on Friday and Saturday in both the Walnut Arena and Rolex Stadium. Both will also be featured as part of Sunday's Opening Ceremonies. Hart, as a Paralympic veteran, will also appear as part of “Champions Live!” a discussion panel held annually at LRK3DE that features U.S. equestrian champions from each Olympic/Paralympic discipline.

“I'm both thrilled and incredibly appreciative to EEI for the opportunity to introduce Para Jumping to the United States at an event as prestigious and well-attended as the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event,” said Zimmerman. “I hope to contribute to the growth and accessibility of horse sport by empowering change within the equestrian community. The short-term goal is for Para Jumping to become an officially recognized discipline which will ultimately help establish greatly needed resources, pathways, and competition opportunities for riders with disabilities to participate in the jumping disciplines.”

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The Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event is a thrilling multi-day competition featuring Olympic-level riders and horses in what can best be described as an equestrian triathlon. Horse and rider pairs compete in three phases of the competition – Dressage, Cross-Country and Show Jumping – for $375,000 in prize money. Two distinct Eventing competitions are held, a CCI5*-L and a CCI4*-S. LRK3DE is the longest-running Five Star event in the Americas and as the United States' premier event, it also serves as the Land Rover/USEF CCI-5*-L Eventing National Championship presented by MARS Equestrian for the U.S. athletes.

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Fate Of Famous Kentucky Three-Day Event Uncertain

Like the vast majority of equestrian events last year, the 2020 Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event (LRK3DE) was cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic. The first five-star event in North America, and one of only seven in the world, the LRK3DE has now had to postpone tickets sales for the 2021 event as the state of world health in April is still uncertain. A second cancellation of the event could lead to the end of the event and of Equestrian Events Inc. (EEI), which puts on the event.

EEI was hopeful that they could make up for some of last year's financial shortfall by hosting the 2020 American Eventing Championships (AECs) at the Kentucky Horse Park in August, but that show was also cancelled. This leaves the organization in a precarious financial position.

Though ticketholders for the 2020 LRK3DE could roll over their tickets to the 2021 event—to the tune of $900,000—a 2021 cancelation would require EEI to refund their money. EEI has received government payroll protection, an emergency disaster loan and has maxed out its line of credit, says Lee Carter, executive director of EEI. Carter says the organization is prepared to submit an application for the next round of payroll protection as soon as applications can be received.

Though the 2021 Badminton Horse Trials, held in Britain, is slated to run behind closed doors just 10 days after the LRK3DE, running without fans isn't an option for the Kentucky Three-Day. The vast majority of the event's income comes from the over 800,000 visitors who attend the event each year. The event also has a major impact on tourism in Lexington, Georgetown and surrounding cities.

EEI has produced a plan for how they intend to keep spectators and competitors safe, including limiting seating for both the dressage and show jumping phases; cross-country by its nature is socially distanced, but plans are in place for areas of the course that are notoriously crowded. The organization is awaiting a decision from both the state of Kentucky and from the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) as to if they can host the 2021 event. USEF currently has rules in place that don't permit spectators at any USEF-sanctioned competitions.

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