Olympic Preparation Stalled and Qualification in Jeopardy.

"Our eventing preparation has been delayed for everyone here, there is no doubt about that” commented Heath Ryan when asked about the run up to the Olympic Games in Hong Kong next year. I have a young horse, Mystery Whisper (Pictured left) that I have taken very slowly. He was second at the Melbourne 3DE last June. He is only Two Star and was to have his first Three Star Start at Scone. He is absolutely raging now and I was going to have a shot at Olympic selection with him. It is a bit of a shot from left field and to qualify he needs to have done two Three Star Three Day Events and I don’t think that is going to be possible now. There are others with Two Star Horses, I think Stuart (Tinney) has a couple of horses he was thinking about preparing (for Olympic selection), but it will be very difficult for them now.

“Adelaide Four Star and the Sydney Three Day Event will be rescheduled, and that would be OK for selection, but there is a problem doing two Three Day Events close together. (Sydney and Melbourne). With the more experienced horses, there is concern regarding how long those affected with EI will take to be able to go hard again.

“The cancellation of the Regional Olympic Qualifier to be conducted at the Australian Dressage Championships at SIEC in October has put Australia at risk of not qualifying (a team) now, as we can’t have our showdown with the Japanese, the Koreans and New Zealand here.

“The Japanese are pushing to have it in the Northern Hemisphere and the Koreans in the past have been able to lease very good horses, so you just don’t know what would come out of the woodwork there.

“The FEI might say it has to be in Europe, but another option, which we would prefer here, would be for the Ground Jury to travel to the competition, (like the Samsung Final) in Australia, Japan or wherever. It is a possibility. (Pictured; Heath Ryan and Dr Margaret Evans' charasmatic Rubenstein stallion, Regardz Moi vying for Olympic selection Photo by Julie Wilson)

“At home (Lochinvar) we are so far flu free. We have started to go ahead with the stud season and have been pregnancy testing and follicle testing, just to get the stud work up and running, but it is worrying. We have forty mares due to foal this season and I just hope I haven’t made a stupid call”.