Ponies from Remus Horse
Sanctuary
JANUARY
Starting off the year with a sour taste were the Bushfires in Australia . Burning since September 2019 , in January 2020 Australia announced an urgent humanitarian and animal welfare emergency as the situation intensified . With prolonged droughts , extreme heat , evacuations , and loss of life , the United Kingdom ’ s ( UK ’ s ) equestrian industry acted with due haste to fundraise for this emergency and life threatening situation .
Just ten days into 2020 , the Equine Fire Relief Australia Fund was launched to support equestrian communities affected by the bushfires of Australia . With the primary aim to raise funds for emergency relief and also moral support for the equine community of Australia , UK equestrians stepped up to the mark admirably .
Cheshire based Somerford Park Equestrian Cente led the way with fundraising efforts for Australia , quickly organising and announcing their ‘ Horses For Hope ’ dressage event . Attracting Olympic competitors with unlikely partners and raffling exclusive prizes from leading equestrian names , all in aid of generating maximal funds for the natural disaster , the equestrian event was a huge success raising over £ 15,000 !
FEBRUARY
By the start of February , the equestrian world was beginning to realise the impact of COVID-19 , as the first major event , the Longines Masters of Hong Kong , was cancelled due to the virus spreading across mainland China . Part of a series of intercontinental , prestigious show jumping competitions , the cancellation of the established Asian series leg came as a massive blow , especially to the show jumping community . However , equestrians were unaware at this stage that this was only the start of things to come .
MARCH
It was March when the effect of Coronavirus COVID-19 was truly felt in the UK , with restrictions being heavily enforced before the end of the month .
However , before we entered what was swiftly being referred to as ‘ new norm ’, the historic Cheltenham Festival was given the go ahead despite being shrouded by the potential risks to health and safety . The festival , which attracted over 150,000 spectators , was met with backlash with many questioning whether the decision for the event to go ahead was ethical . This ultimately clouded the glory of Al Boum
EVERYTHING HORSE : DECEMBER 2020 • 11