Tours may progress if new horses are not allowed and no positive cases have been confirmed.

A few minutes ago, late in the evening, the International Equestrian Federation sent out a press release, first to the national federations and then to the press, revealing more important measures related to the spread of equine rhinopneumonia. Found in Valencia. Communication We fully report.

The FEI has canceled international events in 10 countries on the European continent With immediate effect until March 28, 2021, Due to the rapid evolution of the highly invasive strain of the equine herpes virus – EHV-1 (neurological form), which originated in Valencia (Spain) and has already caused an associated outbreak in at least three other countries in Europe.

This decision applies to all FEI categories, but the same specific tours may be continued to prevent multiple horses from leaving the Iberian Peninsula, Italy and Belgium, which have been running for several weeks, at the same time, and new horses will not be allowed to enter the competition venues, provided that the positive cases of EHV-1 have not been confirmed. ”Was.

Jumping tours of Vemper de la Frontera (Spain), Vilamora (Portugal), San Giovanni in Marignano and Gorla Minor (Italy) will have strict bio-safety protocols and require a presence on the site of FII veterinary delegates. Horses are only allowed to leave these places if they have a health certificate from the local veterinary authorities. Any horses leaving these venues without such documentation will be locked in the FEI database. The FEI also warns that it is illegal to ride a horse without a health certificate.

The organizing committee of Oliva Nova (Spain) informed FEI this afternoon that it had decided to cancel the remaining schedules of the Mediterranean Equestrian Tour III. Similarly, the CEO of Oplugbeek (Belgium) announced the cancellation of events for March.

Many countries, including France, have already canceled all their events to reduce the spread of the virus.

The decision on events in France, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Italy, Austria, Poland, the Netherlands, Germany and Slovakia is made in accordance with the FII General Regulations (Article 112.3): “The Secretary-General shall remove any contention from the calendar in the presence of reasonable circumstances and / or any exclusion from the calendar.”

“BDiscover events in Europe This was not an easy decision, especially after the severe disruption caused by the Kovid-19 pandemic, “said FEI Secretary-General Sabrina Ibiz.” This strain of EHV-1 is particularly aggressive, leading to horse death and serious clinical cases already. We need to keep our horses safe. We know that many horses left the Valencia site without a single official health certificate, which means they were in an unknown state of health. Some horses were already sick, and the possibility of transmission was a major concern. The cancellation of these competitions in Europe, with the exception of jumping tours on the Iberian Peninsula and Italy, limits the number of horses that travel internationally, thus reducing the risk of this virus becoming more serious and wider. We strongly recommend that interested federations also cancel their national events. We know this is a particularly stressful and tragic time, and we know that this situation is detrimental to the minimum qualification requirements (MER) or Tokyo’s results aimed at confirmation (for horses and riders), but we’re learning how to ensure that events in Europe can be resumed if their resumes become permanent.

FEI is aware that some athletes have already arrived or are traveling to the competition venues, and will contact all interested parties who have registered for the event between March 28, 2021.

You can find all the latest updates on EHV-1 WHO