(October 14, 2018, Beijing) The 8th Longines Equestrian Beijing Masters came to an end at the National stadium (Bird’s Nest). This classic equestrian event was held by Chinese Equestrian Association, the National Stadium (Bird’s Nest), Dashing Equestrian, world's top equestrian event "CHIO Aachen" operation team-A.R.T. with Mr. Ludger Beerbaum. This event also has become the first CSI 4* in China. As it become the longest equestrian event ever held at the symbolic place where lighting the both of the Olympic Summer Games flame and the Olympic Winter Games flame in China, the bird nest. At the same time, it is the highest level of equestrian show jumping event for Chinese riders and their horses in mainland of China as well.
The 8th Longines Equestrian Beijing Masters was held at the National Stadium (Bird’s Nest) from Oct. 12th to 14th, and there were 242 pairs of riders and horses participating,competing in 6 different features of competitions. The total prize money will be RMB 2.3361 million. The U14 Rising Star category was added this year to give more opportunities to Chinese teenage riders to showcase their skills at the Bird’s Nest.
At the 8th Longines Equestrian Beijing Masters, Longines watches will continue to be the title sponsor as well as the official timekeeper. With a 186 year-old tradition of refined watchmaking and a lasting enthusiasm for equestrian sports, Longines has long served as the official timekeeper for arrays of world-class equestrian events. It has also launched elegant and precise wrist masterpieces. For this year’s event, Longines presented the Record Collection as the designated watch, in order to pay tribute to the bond between Longines and equestrian sports for nearly 140 years. The hairsprings for the Record Collection are made of monocrystalline silicon, which protects the watch from the effects of temperature changes, magnetic fields and atmospheric pressure. All watches have been certificated by Controle Officiel Suisse des Chronometres, supporting their refined judgements. BMW will continue to be the diamond partner and mobility Partner. BMW M760Li xDrive is provided for BMW Drive and Jump Competition. This is the first time BMW has applied the high-performance of the BMW M to the BMW 7, which is another legendary model which stands at the top of the BMW pyramid in the new era. Along with the sound of the engine,the LEBM successfully ended.
Today's Event Express:
The U14 Rising Star Class (60cm)
The U14 Rising Star Class, as a new class this year, attracted 36 pairs of riders and horses to join, and the youngest rider is only 7 years old. This competition is a sub-race, competitors have to finish jumping over the first 6 fences to start the next 5. The height of the fences is 60cm, the designer added more turns in the route, which requires higher horse control ability and line selecting ability for the riders.
The Chinese young rider Keyi Chen with the horse “Chou Chou Z”won the first place by 22.07s with zero penalty. Yutian Liu with “Mikke’s Moonlight”won the second place by 22.21s, Yuchen Song with “Jindou”won the third place by 22.81s with zero penalty.
"Today I am very happy to have the chance to compete with so many riders of my age and I enjoyed the game very much. I believe I have a long way to go in the future, I'll continue to work hard.” The teenager champion rider Keyi Chen shared her thoughts.
BMW Elite Class Final (135cm)
After yesterday's first round of competition, all riders are competing in the reverse order of the first round’s results. The route is 480 meters long, with a combination obstacle and a triple obstacle, and the rider needs to finish the ride in 74 seconds. The route was so difficult that the 18th rider Xujia Shi was the first one who finished the game with zero penalty. Among the rest competitors, Kenneth Cheng and Vincent Vermuelen, the champion of the first round, finished the race with zero penalty. Only three riders entered the extra round from 16 pairs of riders and horses .
In the extra round, the dark horse Xujia Shi and her horse “Cognac du Vlist Z”won third place. Kenneth Cheng and “Fancy Face” won the second place by 41.81s with zero penalty. Vincent Vermuelen kept up his great work, winning the first place with his horse “Ceylon” by 40.99s.
“Today I continued the luck of yesterday, there weren’t so many riders who got zero penalty in the first round, so I wasn’t too stressed. I won the championship with such a slender lead in the extra round, and it feels great. I hope that I could win this trophy here next year.”
Longines Grand Prix (150cm)
The Longines Grand Prix, as the highlight of the tournament, starts on time at 3:00p.m. In the Longines Grand Prix, there are 12 obstacles in total, of which the 8th obstacle is a triple-jump obstacle. The rider altogether needs to complete 15 jumps. The total length of the route is 450 meters, and the time limit is 75 seconds.
Harrie Smolders - the world championship owner, Ludger Beerbaum - Four Olympic Games champions, Daniel Deusser – famous German rider, and many other famous riders are participating in the Longines Grand Prix Final. Upon starting, the difficult design of the route brought a lot of challenges to the riders, many riders hit the obstacles or had time penalties. In the end, 7 riders finished the ride with zero penalty.
Eleven hurdles are set up in the additional round, the route length is 300 meters, and the horses needs to jump 10 times in total. The first two riders Kenneth Cheng and Malin Baryard-Johnsson both hit the last fence. The third rider Daniel Deusser with his horse “Gringovantelzenhout” finished the route by 40.68s with zero penalty for the first time, which helped him win the third place. Henrik von Eckermann, the champion of last year, was the fourth rider on the field. He and his horse “Cincitty” finished the route by 38.38s with zero penalty, winning the championship for the second time. The last Chinese rider, Ciren Bianba, with his horse " High Sky Du Sud ", won the second place by 40.63s.
Stars shining on the blue blanket
Before the final tournament, everyone's eyes were on the Longines Blue carpet Area. This was the pinnacle of the LEBM: the ambassador Eddie Peng, together with Ruby Lin, Meng Li, Jingkang Liang, Xiaoyun Chenand Zhehan Zhang, drew everyone’s attention. They gave performances to cheer for all the riders and added luster to the LEBM.
New weekend experience in the Equestrian Park
With the development of Chinese equestrian in recent years, equestrian sport has taken off the so-called "noble sports" coat and has become more about advocating harmony between human and nature, and generally blending into the public life. Elegance, passion, style, and health are the labels of today's equestrian sport. With more and more brand sponsors and partners joining in, the LEBM has become a "weekend park" that brings together equestrian culture and Lifestyle.
Last year's well-recognized equestrian park made many friends miss the weekend spent. And this year, the larger, richer, more participatory Equestrian Park will be at the "Bird's Nest" sending more happy hours to everyone. Entering the equestrian park, the Merry-go-round in Longines’ exhibition hall came all the way from Europe, letting the audience feel the European romantic environment. BMW m760li Xdrive also gives a feast for anyone who loves mechanical aesthetics. It’s the first time BMW applying the high-performance of BMW M to BMW 7, which is another legendary model that stands at the top of the BMW pyramid in the new Era. The new BMW M760li Xdrive is a masterpiece of sporty and honorable style, perfectly blends the limousine’s comfort and supercar’s excitement, creating the ultimate luxury travel experience, which will bring the rider and the audience a passionate and dynamic driving experience.
People who know BMW should know what M means, and this car expresses the charm of the brand perfectly. Cooperating with other event sponsors and well- known brands, the experience program will be set up within the equestrian park, including five different zones, providing a full equestrian life experience for the audience.
The activities promote the communication between worldwide riders, while the BMW Child Safe Driving Training camp helps kids to practice before their actual tournaments. Everyone can be a judge by using the“SAP Spector Judge”APP! The Children's Equestrian Experience Area in park gives a deeper understanding of not only equestrian itself, but feel the spirit of teamwork, kindness, tolerance and fraternity.
French wine brand Maison CASTEL, well-known bakery Croissant-Village and Rosewood Hotels will offer five-star catering to satisfy everyone's tastes. Melitta Daily King Coffee and Canten’s high-end brand Blairquhan will offer the beverage for this year’s event. United Family Hospitals Beijing provides medical care as a strong shield for the players; the post-match physiotherapy service of China Liangtse restores the riders’ strengths; the professional rider service team Red Runm comes to the 8th LEBM to provide professional and final solutions for the venue and riders' needs; Hit-Air armor protects and supports young riders to speak for themselves. Cheval Dashing Stable Supplies gives you a glimpse of equestrian fashion; Bank of Beijing Private Bank brings you high-end consumer solutions on the spot; Ctrip and the current tournament jointly launched the collector-level knight card to provide convenience for your travel as a VIP.
To be continued…
Since 2011, the Longines Equestrian Beijing Masters came to the Bird’s Nest, has attracted enormous riders and equestrian lovers’ attention. From the beginning to CSI4*, every step forward is about the truest expression of those who truly love the equestrian. Nowadays, the LEBM has become the leader of national equestrian tournaments, enriching and improving itself all the time, spreading the professional knowledge to more and more people. The ambassadors help attracting more attention to the LEBM, which urges the team to maintain a meticulous working attitude.
About Longines Equestrian Beijing Masters
The 8th Longines Equestrian Beijing Masters will be staged at the National Stadium (Bird's Nest) from October 12th to 14th. And it has been promoted as the first CSI 4* in China). It is jointly organized by Dashing Stable, Mr. Ludger Beerbaum , as well as the world-renowned “CHIO-AACHEN”operation team A.R.T.company as one of the largest equestrian events in Asia. Since the beginning of the "Bird's Nest Masters" in 2011, it has been greatly supported by the Chinese Equestrian Association and the National Stadium (Bird's Nest). The event will be held till 2020 at least, which marks it as the first international competition IP held at the Bird’s Nest for ten consecutive years.
Longines Equestrian Beijing Masters has come to its 8th year, which has not only witnessed the gradual maturity and development of Chinese equestrian sports, but has also become one of the largest and the most influential equestrian show-jumping competition for both Chinese and international riders to compete on the same platform in China. It has also made significant progress in promoting the development of Chinese equestrian. As the event is promoted as a CSI4* event of FEI, the settings will be closer to the riders’needs. It is expected that a total of 251 top Chinese and international riders who have gained significant glories worldwide will compete fiercely in this three-day event.
http://www.beijingmasters.com/