Vicenzo Truppa, O-judge and organizer of the 2007 European Dressage Championships, responds to Frank Kemperman and Joep Bartels' complaint about the lack of media coverage at the European Championships and the general lack of leadership
in the organization and efficient promotion of the sport of dressage in the equestrian world. Truppa replies to Bartels' and Kemperman's statement in a open letter.
Dear Joep,
I am glad you enjoyed the Europeans in Turin. In fact I remember very well that you were much in favour of assigning them to Turin during a DC meeting where you were present. Similar comments I have received from many riders, trainers an chef d’ equipes. W. Wittig said that this Championship will be a big problem for the future because he does not see how can it be made better or even similar. I am sending you here a mail received from Sweden in order to introduce my arguments later in this mail. Elizabeth Lundholm, as you can read it, says, amongst other nice appreciations: “The most important is that our horses came back in a very good and fit shape thanks to the good conditions for them, the best stabling ever!”.
Wim Ernes says: “I want to thank you for all your efforts to give the judges and all the others, an unforgettable stay in La Mandria. It was great!!!
Here comes the point where I am not in agreement with you and Frank: a Championship is a Championship!!!! Priorities for FEI, riders and Federations are not necessarily to have the largest number of sponsors, but rather to hold championships where horses are taken full care (stabling, footing etc)as well as riders, trainers and officials (too!!!)
Judges and officials, as well as FEI representatives, had in Turin a VIP table and taken full care of! I have been reported of “successful championships” were they had problems to have a proper meal and did not know where to seat when not judging!
When FEI receives its fees or your daughter and other riders receive prize money, I do not think they matter if it comes from private sponsors as a result of highlight policy, or if it comes simply from a Federation or a public entity (in our case Regione Piemonte gave 250000 euros to Italian Federation for this Championship) Once the money is there, I think all of them would be more concerned that the technical aspects were perfect! I have been told, by the way, that the Turin competition site was one of the most horse friendly ever!
Italy (then myself) has organized the 1998 WEG in ROME and 2007 Europeans in Turin and many JYR championships(Barzago the last in 2005) All were considered at the “TOP”. This is nothing to do with the country hosting them to be in a “elite” as Frank is implying : If I recall well, WEG in Holland are not remembered to such an extent!
This can be a counter comment to Frank’s statement about the Europeans being assigned to Italy where dressage is “non-existing” By the way what does he know about that? National shows in Italy are run with nearly 200/250 horses giving problems to the organizers where to host them. 2007 Junior and Y riders Championships in Germany: Italy won bronze medals for juniors and Y Riders as well as individual bronze and gold medal(2006 as well). This is also dressage! It is a dressage of a developing country which decided to grow gradually from the fundaments, in other words investing on youngsters who,hopefully,will develop one day to become top seniors: exactly what happened to your successful daughter! You say that Frank could not see any media coverage at all….
Holland is a country with an overall population equal to Milan and its area (Lombardia) of about 18 million persons where dressage brings one of the few medals at Olympics etc. It is clear that anything relating to dressage will stay on first pages of papers and television in that country. Italy is a country with nearly 70 million people and is the “home-country” of football and bicycling. Therefore first pages are taken by these disciplines in alternative to FERRARI or Valentino ROSSI! Dressage comes after all this of course. I do not know at which media Frank was looking during his stay in Italy. I am afraid it was the equivalent of the Financial Time or “Corriere della Sera”. If you go on the Italian section of the Europeans web site you will find many of the articles appeared on the Italian newspaper before, during and after the championship. My daughter has been interviewed 4 times from various television to comment on the Europeans and other broadcasting has taken place many other times!
There has been tv coverage” LIVE” for many countries, specifically Germany, Holland, France and the Italian broadcasting has counted 60,000 people watching it. We had 12,000 spectators in the 4 days with nearly 7,000 on Sunday. I doubt very much they were all Germans Dutch and Swiss as he says.
I do not remember these figures so often reached (Amsterdam and Gothenburg and Las Vegas finals) and these figures, are in my opinion, more difficult to reach than the 50,000 spectators of Aachen where conditions, traditions, popularity etc are completely different. We want to create many Aachen and not remain with the same limited number of countries involved in this sport.
I am also an organizer and I fully understand that all efforts must be made to make our sport more visible and “sell” it to the utmost in order to get more sponsors and collect more money to put into it. But to go that way we must also think to make it also more popular and take it to countries (Italy was an example) where more people can have the chance to see the top combinations at championships (leave the top shows for top countries as you ask) and then develop the “movement”: more people undertaking the discipline, more horses sold and then more breeders interest, more trainers and more sponsors at the end. We cannot get stuck only on one side of the problem!
Sorry for being so long, but I felt necessary to explain my views as to the so called” highlight policy” with which I am totally in agreement, but this policy must be implemented tactful and with intelligence taking into consideration, for Championships in particular, other parameters as well, not necessarily with lower priority than sponsors and profits, such as good technical conditions, proper treatment of riders, trainers and officials, enlarging future audiences, etc.
Vincenzo Truppa
Photo copyrighted: Astrid Appels/Eurodressage
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