FEI Board confirms awarding of FEI European Dressage and Para-Dressage Championships 2023
Riesenbeck in Germany has been named host of the FEI European Dressage and Para-Dressage Olympic and Paralympic Championships in 2023.
The award was made by the FEI Executive Board at its monthly teleconference on October 21, 2021, and the exact dates will be confirmed and listed in the FEI calendar for 2023 once approved by the FEI Secretary General. The Championships will be one of the FEI's sporting highlights in 2023 and will serve as qualifying events for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris in 2024. Riesenbeck has an outstanding record of hosting top-level national and international equestrian events, including the 2021 Longines FEI Jumping European Championships. The 2023 FEI Dressage and Para-Dressage European Championships will be held at the Riesenbeck International Equestrian Center, which features multiple outdoor arenas, an indoor arena and 336 state-of-the-art stalls. "It is a pleasure to have the Riesenbeck Organizing Committee on board to host the FEI European Dressage and Para-Dressage Championships in 2023," said FEI Secretary General Sabrina Ibáñez. "The organizing committee did a fantastic job hosting the 2021 Longines FEI European Show Jumping Championships, and we know that our disabled and para athletes will perform at their best athletically in Riesenbeck's state-of-the-art facilities."
Riesenbeck is the hometown of German show jumping legend Ludger Beerbaum, a four-time Olympic gold medalist and six-time European champion, who is also president of the Riesenbeck organizing committee. "We are very proud to be able to host another European Championship in Riesenbeck," said Beerbaum. "The idea to bid for this championship came from my partner in the Global Equestrian Group, Andreas Helgstrand, who - himself a successful dressage rider - wants to highlight the potential of the facility for his discipline as well." Beerbaum continued, "Organizing the European Championships, which will also be an Olympic and Paralympic qualifier, is a big responsibility for us, and we are already working on the planning. Our top priority is the safety and well-being of all our human athletes and the horses. We also know how important it is to provide quality working conditions for everyone involved in organizing the event."
"We are committed to making these championships enjoyable for everyone, especially our equestrian fans, whom we hope to welcome in large numbers to enjoy all that dressage and para-dressage have to offer."
"We are very pleased that Riesenbeck International has been awarded the FEI European Dressage and Para-Dressage Championships 2023," said German Equestrian Federation Secretary General Soenke Lauterbach. "Riesenbeck has a successful championship history and it is great that Ludger Beerbaum and his team, after organizing the Longines FEI European Show Jumping Championships 2021 in a very short time, are about to tackle the next big task."
Source: Riesenbeck International
