War is only an indirect reason
Russian riders will not take part in the Olympics in Paris
December 25, 2023, 5:00 p.m
Russian and Belarusian riders will not compete at the Olympics in Paris. Despite the war in Ukraine, they would no longer be blocked. The end has another reason. Meanwhile, there will be no comeback for gold mare “Mandy” in eventing.
The International Equestrian Federation (FEI) has announced that Russian and Belarusian athletes will not compete at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. The decision is based on the fact that the athletes have not taken part in FEI events since March 2, 2022 due to the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine and the subsequent sanctions and therefore have not been able to collect the necessary points for Olympic qualification the FEI announced.
“According to the Olympic qualification system for equestrian sports, individual qualification is ensured through the FEI Olympic Rankings for Jumping, Dressage and Eventing, which cover the period from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023. As Russian and Belarusian athletes since March 2 “If they no longer took part in FEI competitions in 2022, there will be no representatives of these nations at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris,” the statement said.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) recently declared that individual athletes from Russia and Belarus would be eligible to take part in the Summer Games in France’s capital despite the war under certain conditions, provided they meet the qualification conditions.
Krajewski without gold horse “Mandy”
In mid-November, the FEI declared, with reference to the IOC, that it would allow Russians and Belarusians to be neutral athletes again and that the sanctions would be lifted. The ban on international competitions in Russia and Belarus remains. Both countries play no role in top international equestrian sport.
Meanwhile, eventing Olympic champion Julia Krajewski announced that she will not be competing in Paris with her gold horse Amande de B’Neville. The chestnut mare, which was recently injured and was supposed to be trained up for next year’s Summer Games, is no longer returning to the sport, as 35-year-old Krajewski wrote on Instagram.
The mare has been suffering from an injury to her hoof for a long time. This in itself is “not particularly dramatic” and would not affect the animal in normal everyday life. “There is a risk that it could get significantly worse if she had to withstand physical activity again. While there is a small chance that it could work, we decided against trying it,” explained Krajewski, who appeared on ” Mandy” also won World Championship gold in the team and silver in the individual. Last year, Krajewski qualified for Paris with her two young horses Eros de Cantraie and Nickel.