The World Equestrian Center in Ocala has been named as one of four venues for the new Longines League of Nations that gets under way next year. The allocations, which run through 2027, were also made for Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, St. Gallen Switzerland and Rotterdam in the Netherlands.
Teams from 10 countries must appear for all four CSIO 5-stars in the unfortunately named League of Nations (click here to read my opinion about the name that was chosen for this initiative.) There was also supposed to be a fifth venue, but because of logistics involving the 2024 Paris Olympics, the qualifier sites were kept to four.
The final of the series, featuring the eight best teams, will remain in Barcelona as it has for 10 years.
“We have made a historic decision for the future of equestrian sport,” FEI President Ingmar De Vos said.
“This series is about inspiring individuals and nations around the core values of our sport -– camaraderie, team spirit, horsemanship and excellence — and for over a century, it has played an invaluable role in the development of equestrian globally.”
Roby Roberts, WEC CEO, said, “We are grateful to the FEI for choosing World Equestrian Center Ocala to host this prestigious event and thank U.S. Equestrian for its support through the bid process.
“World Equestrian Center was built on our three core values of quality, class and distinction, and hosting a qualifier for the Longines League of Nations embodies these values, as well as achieves a long-held goal of welcoming the best equestrians in the world to our facility.”
The stadium at WEC will be a great showcase for the new series. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
While the other shows named as hosts have some history behind them, WEC is only three years old. The 378-acre WEC complex, set in the midst of nearly 4,000 acres, offers a 248-room, 5-star hotel. Grooms will stay in the Home-Away-From-Home manufactured homes. The competition likely will be held in March, which was the date WEC requested.
“I think it will be great exposure to WEC. We’re super-excited about it,” said Christy Baxter, WEC’s director of equestrian operations.
WEC always does things on a grand scale, so there are plans for an equine expo during the competition week, and discussion is getting under way about production thoughts for entertainment and other attractions.
“This is definitely something that will put us a little bit bigger on the map and more exposure, a lot more people to come and visit,” said Christy.
“I know everybody reads about us on line, but to actually come and see it in person is another thing. We’re hoping everyone comes and has a good time during that week.”
The FEI president said, “We were very pleased with the large number of organizers eager to host a Longines League of Nations event in the coming seasons. We undertook the task of selecting the events with great responsibility and I believe we have made a difficult but fair choice, striking a good balance between continuity and evolution.
“This fresh and exciting series gives us the opportunity to display the very best of team equestrian sport to large audiences in key territories and we are looking forward to working closely with these organizers to continue the Nations Cup legacy and inspire future generations of equestrians.”
The League was created following a six-month consultation phase with a dedicated task force, which was set up to review and redefine the iconic Nations Cup series and included all the key equestrian stakeholders. It was designed to “give a fresh start for the century-old equestrian team series” and will see a full makeover starting in 2024.
The format, which was approved unanimously by the FEI Jumping Committee, will be unique to the Longines League of Nations. In the first of two rounds, all four athletes from all 10 teams (and potentially the host nation) participate with the three best scores to count, followed by a second round where the best eight teams compete in reverse order, carrying forward their penalties from the first round. In that round, however, only three athletes per team will ride, so there will be no drop score for that segment.
Other Nations Cups, such as Spruce Meadows, Aachen and the one at the Winter Equestrian Festival that are not part of the new league will continue under the same rules they are using in 2023, but they will not be called FEI Nations Cup and will not be part of a series or lead up to a final.
There have always been many CSIOs on the FEI calendar outside of the Longines FEI Jumping Nations Cup™. There are 48 CSIOs ranging from 1* to 5* level on the FEI calendar for 2023. Only 11 of those (10 qualifiers and one Final) are part of the the Longines FEI Jumping Nations Cup™ 2023.