Archive for August, 2008

The thirteenth Paralympics will take place in Beijing from 6th to 17th of September 2008 and the equestrian events are scheduled to be hosted in Hong Kong under the slogan of “One World, One Dream”. The Hong Kong Olympic Equestrian Venue is located in “Sha Tin” being a 100 m x 80 m sand arena prepared to welcome 8,000 viewers.

“Equestrian” is a sport where the competitor is supposed to partner with a horse and Equestrian competitions in Paralympics consists of 3 main disciplines such as Dressage, Jumping and Eventing. Dressage, which is also referred to “equestrian ballet”, is a competition of set of movements or freestyle actions according to the music performed by the horse with a close correlation with the rider. “Jumping” is where the horse should jump over the obstacles on the way of the ride and the rider must make sure the ride is completed within the exact duration. Eventing is comprised with both Dressing and Jumping in the ride full of natural obstacles. The winner is decided according to the minimum number of penalties.

The athletes are divided in to 5 stages as Grade la, lb, 2, 3 and 4.Athletes who belong to the grade la encounter most difficult obstacles while the ones of the grade 4 face the least of obstacles. This time, Hong Kong is prepared to facilitate all the requirements with high standard horse quarantine system. The cross country competition which is a part of the Eventing in Equestrian Events is to be held at the Beas River Country Club in Sheung Shui. Moreover, four equine cooling stations have been set up in the main venue of Sha Tin in order to cool the horses after training and competitions. They are composed with many supplies of cooled water to keep horses always in good health.

Apart from that, Hong Kong provides all the facilities not only for such horse competitions, but also it is looking forward to welcoming people from all over the world with premier hospitality services along with prominent hotels in Hong Kong. One of the best examples of such a hotel is Cosmo Hotel that offers special packages particularly during the summer.

Beijing, China will host the 2008 Olympics. Hundreds of countries throughout the world will gather together for that prestigious event. That is one of the reasons why the Chinese government has been working hard for their preparation and is now in their final touch for all things that need to be done.

There are lots of sports event done in Olympic season and one of the most prestigious is the equestrian. That is the reason why Olympic Equestrian Riders are in intense training in preparation for such a big event. Training for Olympic equestrian riders is not that easy, it takes a lot of endurance, hardship, mental and physical intellects to succeed.

Olympic equestrian riders allocate years trying to find out information and strategies from various trainers for a few tips that help them with their equestrian sports training before they ‘chance’ upon training that actually works for them successfully that they can instantly understand and practice the moves.

How many times do you see people practicing the same move whether general riding, dressage, western, western pleasure or cutting and they repeat the same moves over and over with no improvement ‘locking’ their horse into a frame and getting mediocre results.

Meeting With Co-Equestrian Riders

An effective way to practice equestrian is by organizing to meet with co-riders and practice together, or attend a group clinic or workshop with a group and trainer. This strategy will give you a chance to watch and observe how other riders demonstrate their training moves and perceive their strong or weak points, understanding how to correctly implement a movement and then practice it yourself.

Being with a trainer provides you the extra benefit of getting needed assistance and guidance that you need and it is well worth the investment to progress your training. Learning effective horse riding techniques from trainer can really benefit you and your capacity- enough or more than enough to compete with other Olympic equestrian riders.

Remember, however, a good trainer for horse riding will tell you regarding the results they have obtained with other horses. The information that they give will be clear and concise, being easy for you to understand as they discuss what you do not want with your horse and then what you do want!

You can understand clearly how to implement the training information with your horse, with examples of improvement being discussed with so you can see how to progress to that point and when it is obtained. Training tips and a free mailing list should be available to you – so you can communicate easily.

Again, it takes years for an Olympic equestrian riders to train themselves. You can be one of those who can compete in 2012 Olympics in London if as early as now, you can start equestrian training.

Although the 2008 Olympics are officially held in Beijing, China, the Olympic equestrian events will be held in Hong Kong. The Olympic equestrian events are categorized into three disciplines – dressage, jumping and eventing. Each of these event winners are awarded individual and team medals. The Hong Kong Sports Institute has organized the Shatin Olympic Equestrian Venue as the venue for the dressage and jumping events. The 18,000 seater outdoor arena includes four blocks of air conditioned stables which can keep a maximum of 200 horses. The venue was specially constructed for the Olympic equestrian events from a part of the Shatin Racecourse. The cross-country events of the games will also be held in Hon Kong, although they’ll be held at the Bead River Country Club and Hong Kong Golf Club, instead of at the racecourse.

The dressage event includes the horse and rider completing a predefined set of movements. The horse’s strength, agility and obedience are tested here, as well as the rider’s ability to lead the horse in subtle manners all throughout the event. Free-flow, lightness and balance are all important in the team during dressage. Held in three rounds, the final aspect of the event includes a musical freestyle test, which tests the horse-and-rider team for their technique and prowess. Interestingly, only commissioned officers were allowed to participate in the Olympics dressage events between the years 1912 and 1952. This was partly due to the fact that 17th and 18th century cavalry officers were the most notable for their horse maneuvering techniques.

The jumping events include a course with 15 to 20 obstacles and a specified time period. Similar to an obstacle race, the aim of this event is to finish the course with the least penalties. Penalties are given if obstacles fall down, the horse balks at the jumps or the rider or horse falls.

The 3-day eventing is the toughest part of the Olympic equestrian events. It requires strength and endurance, because it combines dressage, cross-country racing and show jumping. The first day is for the dressage part. Then the second day involves the cross-country racing, which includes 45 obstacles and 5700 meter galloping. The third and last day is for show jumping, which calculates the ability of the team to recover from the previous day’s ordeal, as well as allows them to demonstrate their superior abilities. The winner in eventing is the team which has the lowest number of penalties.

If you are planning to visit Hong Kong to enjoy the Olympic equestrian events, remember to book your hotel in Hong Kong before you go there. The Olympics is obviously a crowd-gatherer, so booking your Hong Kong Island hotel in advance will ensure you don’t have to go in search of accommodations. If you are keen on staying at a place appointed with all the modern amenities and includes great service, check out the Hotel Jen, a highly acclaimed hotel in Hong Kong.

Horse people spend years trying to find out information and techniques from different trainers for a few tips that help them with their horse back riding training before they ‘chance’ upon training that actually works for them successfully that they can instantly understand and practise the moves.

How many times do you see people practising the same move whether general riding, dressage, western, western pleasure or cutting and they repeat the same moves over and over with no improvement ‘locking’ their horse into a frame and getting mediocre results.

Then they sell their horse and buy a new one and unless the horse can ‘teach’ the rider the ‘move’ the same thing happens. When an experienced trainer hops on the horse they can execute moves that you didn’t know your horse was capable of – This is the SECRET- to learn and understand the required thinking and aids to ask and communicate to your horse and unite this with your correct body position that doesn’t lock or stiffen their frame.

Do you see people kick and hit their horse to move it and when the horse finally moves they jerk on the reins, and pull the mouth to make the horse uncomfortable – it’s no wonder that the horse doesn’t want to move!

Imagine being able to dance in self carriage and never having to continually repeat exercises with your horse, which they see as undeserved punishment! And better still, having the correct riding seat and the respect from your horse so it will move forwards willingly as you lift your energy!

This is why when you have the opportunity to acquire quality training information – You should take it- Read it – Understand it- Plan it and Practise it!

How do you know when the training offered is quality equestrian and horse back riding knowledge that is easily understandable to you?

A good trainer will tell you about the results they have obtained with other horses. The information that they provide will be clear and concise, being easy for you to understand as they discuss what you don’t want with your horse and then what you do want! You can understand clearly how to implement the training information with your horse, with examples of improvement being discussed with so you can see how to progress to that point and when it is obtained. Training tips and a free mailing list should be available to you – so you can communicate easily.

Most importantly great equestrian training is so substantial that it caters for horse back riders and horses of all equestrian disciplines – Western, English, Western Pleasure, Cutting, Reining, Hacking etc. to give breakthroughs and advance horse and horse back rider performance. Lets say a horse won’t go forwards properly, this isn’t a particular problem associated with one equestrian discipline -i.e dressage – it’s a communication and respect issue that can happen to all riders in any equestrian discipline – the equestrian rider needs to understand the theory and comprehend the bodily-kinesthetic knowledge of the moves – how to apply the training and aids, and know what to expect from the horse.

These key areas of training need to be available to the horse back rider in unison allowing an advance in equestrian training and performance, good horse training will equip you in all these areas – ending frustration created from no advance in horse back riding skills – due to only part of the training information being available to the horse back rider.