Talking Horses – FEI Press Release by Louise Parkes Not too many people have been to 17 Olympic Games in their lifetime, but retired British journalist Alan Smith most certainly has. In a career that spanned 48 years he reported on no less than nine Summer and eight Winter Games…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes The birds were singing so loudly in the background that I thought Lucia Montanarella was out in the countryside when I called her last week. She wasn’t though, she was in her apartment in the city of Lausanne, Switzerland where she has been based…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes When I called David Broome last Tuesday he had been haymaking at Mount Ballan Manor near Chepstow in South Wales which, apart from being the family farm, is also home to the hugely popular Wales and West showgrounds. The legendary British showjumping rider is…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release On his debut as a roving reporter, Shetland social media influencer Beachboy Jasper visits Carl Hester’s yard in Gloucestershire, England where he gets the lowdown on some of the inmates. His timing isn’t perfect because the big names have just gone hacking in the morning sunshine. But…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes An interview with James Cunningham Wofford is not something to be taken lightly. Any attempt at leading the conversation fails miserably, because you are talking with a man with the most exceptional communications skills and extraordinary stories to tell. There’s a sense of riding…
Continue ReadingIt’s been a big news days in Ireland with a number of exciting announcements. Sporting his very healthy-looking Phoenix Park tan, Taoiseach Leo Varadakar confirmed the further lifting of Covid 19 restrictions across the country, Horse Sport Ireland and Showjumping Ireland confirmed that the HSI Premier and ISH Studbook series…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes Kevin Babington had just had his hair cut when I spoke with him last week, and in these strange times that’s a cause for major celebration. Around the globe people have been prevented from keeping their curls under control due to pandemic lockdowns. But…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes Riders and sports fans all around the globe are pining for the cut-and-thrust of FEI Jumping Nations Cup™ this year. Since it was first staged back in 1909, war is the only thing that has ever stopped this great annual tournament in its tracks,…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes Ingrid Klimke was cooking dinner while we chatted on Saturday evening. No surprises there, the German star is a born multi-tasker so juggling an interview and an evening meal is a breeze for this lady. In the sport of Eventing she has five Olympic…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes Last Tuesday night, just as the light was fading, a lorry pulled into a stable-yard in Ireland’s County Wicklow, and when the ramp was lowered a lovely bay mare stepped back in time. It was 10 years since Paulank Brockagh, better known as Brocks,…
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