Competition

BE THE INFLUENCE EQUESTRIAN GRAND FINAL – WORLD CUP JUMPING

Round ONE: Thursday 7th November, Dome Pavilion
FINALS: Friday 8th November, Dome Pavilion

Proudly presented by Equestrian Australian and EQUITANA Australia together with a naming right partner "Be The Influence" and supporting partners Gow Gates, Horse Zone and IRT.

Eighteen of Australia’s best World Cup Jumping riders and horses will be invited to compete in the Equestrian Grand Final - Jumping World Cup Qualifier. The selection of these combinations will be via a series of five qualifying events to be conducted Australia-wide:

27 March - Sydney Royal Easter Show CSI-W (Sydney, NSW)         

4 August - Gatton CSI-W (Gatton, QLD)

15 August - Brisbane Royal Show CSI-W (Brisbane, QLD)    

18 August - Caboolture CSI-W (Caboolture, QLD) 

1 September - Gawler CSI-W (Gawler, SA)    

12 September - Adelaide Royal Show CSI-W (Adelaide, SA)

30 September - Melbourne Royal Show CSI-W (Melbourne, VIC)          

Jumping qualification criteria:

• 18 of Australia’s best Grand Prix Jumping riders and horses will be invited to compete in the Be the Influence Equestrian Grand Final - Jumping.
• At the conclusion of the Royal Melbourne World Cup qualifier the 15 best placed riders on the 2013 FEI World Cup point score (Australian League) will be offered a place at the Be the Influence Equestrian Grand Final.
• If a rider from the top 15 does not wish to compete in the Be the Influence Grand Final the position will be given to the next rider on the leader board.
• EA will also award 3 wild card nominations for the event. The wild card nominations will primarily be reserved for riders who have not been able to participate in the qualifying rounds and can provide a valid written reason, however EA reserves the right to award the wild cards at their discretion.

ABOUT JUMPING COMPETITION

Horses are natural jumpers, and their skill will be shown in the Equestrian Grand Final - Grand Prix Showjumping competition.  Grand Prix is the highest level of show jumping, it is run under the FEI (Fédération Equestre Internationale) rules and regulations.Hunting to hounds in the 18th century over a number of different enclosed properties began the development of a jumping seat and the quest to find horses who were capable of jumping these obstacles.
 
The 1900 Paris Olympic Games held a competition similar to today's showjumping although with noticeably less rules and regulations.  In older forms of showjumping, whether a horse knocked a fence with its forelegs or hind legs would change the amount of penalty points it received as it was infinitely more dangerous for a horse to hit a fence with its forelegs while hunting.

Today, showjumping is governed by both national and international bodies, who have created a sport which cares for the horses well being and developing their scope and athleticism rather than focusing purely on the height of the jump.  A rider and his or her mount must complete a series of numbered jumps.  These obstacles may include water jumps, simulated brick or stone walls, parallel rails, triple bars, oxers and so on and so forth.  When these obstacles are hit by the horse, they are designed to fall and the horse will incur penalties.  Four penalties for knocking down an obstacle, three penalties for refusing an obstacle and exceeding the time limit set for the course.Creating a showjumping course has become an art unto itself, and the courses today are far more technical than previously constructed.  They challenge the ability of the horse to lengthen and shorten their stride at the riders command, to bend and turn and change direction, and to carefully overcome the obstacles.

Showjumping is not a beauty pageant, it is not subjective and does not rely on the judgement of others to produce a result, and this is one of the reasons that it has an ever growing following.

GRAND FINAL PARTNERS

RUG SUPPLIER: Easy on Rugs