In my last post, I forgot to mention one little item which EC decided to put out as a press release and which definitely fits into the ever-expanding category of highly questionable relevance to EC members. At this point I would describe EC’s random behaviour with things that are real news and things that are not as following the law of Entropy – that nature tends from order to disorder. Because I can’t think of any other reason EC would issue a press release announcing the participation of ex-CEO Akaash Maharaj in the upcoming Asian Tent Pegging Championships. Now, if you are not on EC’s media distribution list, you have no way of seeing this wonderful bit of fluff on EC’s site, since EC’s crack communications team has chosen not to post it on its website where the (very) few other releases of the past month are posted. Galloping to the rescue and sharing this important piece of equestrianism news is our own Horse-Canada.com, which posted the release for all you eager tent pegging fans out there.
Not familiar with tent pegging? Here is a little example of it, thanks to the wonderful world of Youtube:
I don’t doubt the History Channel is poised to launch a series on tent pegging any day now.
One final comment on Canada’s tent pegging phenom, Akaash Maharaj. Some of you may have read the investigative article I wrote about the circumstances surrounding his resignation in January, but it’s clear as day to me that no one cared enough to question the actions of those who orchestrated his departure. Oh sure, I received a few nice emails from people who were shocked and saddened by the loss of Canada’s Most Eloquent Equestrian, but I never heard a peep about people asking tough questions at the EC Convention. Of course, Akaash himself did not exactly help push the matter to the surface. He attended the convention and from what I have been told was the picture of poise and good will – gone were the anger and indignation he had expressed just a few weeks earlier. Are Akaash’s detractors right after all? Is he really just a career politician with no agenda more noble than to further his own public image? If that is true, I’m disappointed for sure, not least in my own ability to judge character. But I’m still more disappointed at this latest display of Canada’s apathy when it comes to demanding fair play and accountability from the board members who rule over EC. I guess I’m a really slow learner.
In EC’s ‘week in review’, which I received a few times on Tuesday, Jessica Phoenix’s win in the CIC1* got a mention under the eventing category. Not to take anything away from Jessica’s victory – it is absolutely newsworthy. But also newsworthy and not mentioned at all was the fact that Hawley Bennett-Awad won the Advanced B division with Gin ‘N Juice. It WAS a horse trials division and not FEI sanctioned, but how about creating a bit of buzz around one of our strongest Olympic hopefuls in the months leading up to London? No newspapers on earth will pick up news of Canadians winning competitions if EC doesn’t bash them over the head with it. And no, I’m not going to shut up about this any time soon. If tent pegging gets a press release, then so should our Olympians.
A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post about the protest the Dominican Federation lodged against Brazil’s Olympic dressage qualifiers. I have some news to share on that front, but I’m going to put it on Low Down in order to consolidate my FEI ramblings onto one place.
