The International Equestrian Federation (FEI) recently held meetings at the Pratoni del Vivaro with the twelve directors of the different departments involved in the organisation of the FEI World Championships Eventing, Driving and Endurance to assess work being done together with Italian Equestrian Sports Federation’s OC in preparing for the event.
A visit to the historical facilities built to host the 1960 Rome Olympic Games was followed by a workshop organised in Rome at the Italian National Olympic Committee’s headquarters where throughout the day meetings of the various work groups were held.
The FEI World Championships Eventing and Driving that will be held at the historical equestrian centre Pratoni del Vivaro from 14-25 September next year, hosting the best horses and riders and spectators from every continent, will be a qualifying opportunity for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and will attract great attention from the media. About 80 horses are expected to arrive for the Eventing Championships and 250 for the Driving (four-in-hand competitions).
Work to adapt the facilities to technical infrastructures needed (stables, arenas, cross country and marathon courses) and welcome services (parking, stands, restaurants, shopping area) for the over 40,000 spectators expected over the two weeks of competitions, started months ago and the 140 hectares of the estate will present an unmatchable stage when opened.
This was confirmed by the Mayor of Rocca di Papa, Veronica Cimino, who spoke, as did the President of the FISE, Marco Di Paola, and Secretary General Simone Perillo, greeting the participants in the workshop.
Tim Hadaway, Director, Games Operations, coordinated the meeting attended by the technical delegates of the three disciplines for which world championships will be held in Italy and assign the 2022 medals (Sweden’s Catrin Norinder for Eventing, Portugal’s Manuel Bandeira de Mello for Driving and Jordan’s Christina Abu-Dayyeh for Endurance) discussing matters with key representatives of the FISE Organising Committee. The FEI World Championships Endurance 2022 will also be held in Italy, not at the Pratoni but at Isola della Scala (Verona) on October 22nd.
Workshop organised for the World Championships FEI Eventing, Driving and Endurance – click here for the video.
Statements
Tim Hadaway (FEI Games Operations Director): ”It will be fantastic to compete at Pratoni, which is an iconic, legendary location for out sport and in particular for the disciplines to be hosted in 2022. Important events have been hosted here also in recent years and thanks to cooperation with the Italian Equestrian Sports Federation we are certain that a wonderful edition of the Eventing and Driving World Championships will be organised in which the best drivers and riders will compete and the many spectators will certainly not be disappointed. This will be my first time at Pratoni as the FEI’s Operations Director which is a great honour and an immense pleasure for me.”
Catrin Norinder (FEI Eventing Director): “I am especially delighted about this return to Pratoni, a location and an equestrian centre that has already in the past hosted sporting events at the highest possible levels in this discipline, above all the 1960 Olympic Games and the 1998 WEG. I cannot wait for next September to come as we will be happy to be attending such a great sporting event and do everything possible to support the Italian Equestrian Sports Federation in its organisation.”
Manuel Bandeira de Mello (FEI Driving Director): “I am looking forward to a great edition of the Driving World Championships. Pratoni is an equestrian centre with great traditions and easily accessible and so I trust that there will be a significant participation of the main equestrian federations most active in this equally traditional discipline. Driving is a discipline that is becoming increasingly popular all over the world and I am sure it will attract the interest of a significant number of participants and supporters.”
Christina Abu-Dayyeh (FEI Endurance Director): “This will be my second experience in Italy linked to the Endurance World Championships. The championships held last May in Pisa were a great success in spite of problems linked to the pandemic. We hope things will be the same next year too in Verona. Trusting that the overall context will have improved by then, we hope to have an even more numerous and more qualitative number of participants.”
Simone Perillo (Secretary General Italian Equestrian Sports Federation): “We are enthusiastic about the fruitful days spent working together with the FEI in view of the 2022 World Championships. Assigning this extraordinary event to Italy provides significant evidence of the trust the FEI has in our federation. Significant investments made will provide an important legacy for these facilities that are a strategic centre for equestrian sports and not only top-level competitions.”
Veronica Cimino (Mayor of Rocca di Papa): “Rocca di Papa is an extremely welcoming community and will have a chance to prove this also during these championships which will attract people from all over the world to this area of ours. In 2018 the Municipality bought the Pratoni del Vivaro from the State Property Office and then chose the Italian Equestrian Sports Federation as its interlocutor and partner in managing this facility with its great traditions. Between now and September 2022 we will cooperate at the highest possible level to ensure the redevelopment of the entire area and for the success of this important event.”
FEI World Championships 2022 in Italy
Italy returns to be the ‘Caput Mundi’ of equestrian sports thanks to the organisation of three different FEI World Championships 2022: Eventing, Driving and Endurance. Twenty-four years after the legendary 1998 WEG (World Equestrian Games) held in Rome, the Equestrian Sports Facilities in Rocca di Papa – Pratoni del Vivaro, created by CONI on the eve of the 1960 Olympic Games, are now ready to host the FEI World Championship Eventing 2022 (14-18 September) and FEI World Championships Driving 2022 (21-25 September). The FEI World Championship Endurance 2022 will instead be held at Isola della Scala (Verona) on October 22nd.