PrintAfter the battle for the Wellington show grounds concluded, it’s full speed ahead to improve U.S. equestrian sports.
Mark Bellissimo’s dream of a new and spectacular showgrounds in Wellington, Fla., is dovetailing with his new and spectacular vision for the sport as well.
This month, the old Palm Beach Equestrian Polo Club grounds take on a fresh identity as part of the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center, which also includes the Littlewood show grounds that adjoin it and the old Palm Beach Polo stadium a few blocks away. The facility is the springboard for a host of changes that are boldly recreating the Winter Equestrian Festival into something intended to be more far-reaching than just a show series.
“We’re going to build a phenomenal venture here. [But] in order to build the sport and take it to the next level, you have to make it spectator-friendly. You need to configure the event so it’s much more of an entertainment event,” said Bellissimo, the managing partner of Wellington Equestrian Partners.
“Once you build a spectator base, you can build a sponsor base. The ultimate vision of the sport has to be that high- performance riders make great money at the top and it trickles down; that the top 10 in the United States don’t have to have a trust fund or rich friends to do that.”
But, he added, “It’s a lot of work to get there, and it’s not going to happen overnight. We want to build durability into this model and build it in such a way that it's respectful to the constituency it serves.”
At the end of an acrimonious year in Wellington, Bellissimo’s organization engineered the compilation of the PBIEC as it took control from WEF’s founder, Stadium Jumping Inc., and its chairman, Gene Mische.
During the time that WEP battled with Stadium Jumping amid a tangle of lawsuits, there were those on the sidelines who figured that the newcomer eventually would go away and tradition would prevail, as it so often does in the horse world.
But they didn't know the depth of WEP’s commitment.
“There was no scenario where we were going to give up,” said Bellissimo, who cited the support of his original partners, Dennis Dammerman and Roger Smith, in surviving the conflict.
WEP’s purchase of the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club from Glen Straub set the stage for an agreement involving more high-powered partners. That agreement led to reconciling with the community and Stadium Jumping’s major players, including Jerry Jacobs and his son, Louis.
Bringing in Craig Lindner, who is well known in the horse show world, and other area landowners, was a key to success.
“We had a blend of old families. Craig, from my perspective, was great. He was calm, soothing, very smart and understood the strategy,” said Bellissimo.
The suits were dropped, the partners got Stadium Jumping’s dates in Wellington, and a new era began.
A Grand Vision
Bellissimo hired former Fédération Equestre Internationale Secretary-General Michael Stone and British horse show impresario Simon Brooks-Ward as high-powered consultants, serving notice that big changes were on the horizon.
Mark Bellissimo’s dream of a new and spectacular showgrounds in Wellington, Fla., is dovetailing with his new and spectacular vision for the sport as well.
This month, the old Palm Beach Equestrian Polo Club grounds take on a fresh identity as part of the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center, which also includes the Littlewood show grounds that adjoin it and the old Palm Beach Polo stadium a few blocks away. The facility is the springboard for a host of changes that are boldly recreating the Winter Equestrian Festival into something intended to be more far-reaching than just a show series.
“We’re going to build a phenomenal venture here. [But] in order to build the sport and take it to the next level, you have to make it spectator-friendly. You need to configure the event so it’s much more of an entertainment event,” said Bellissimo, the managing partner of Wellington Equestrian Partners.“Once you build a spectator base, you can build a sponsor base. The ultimate vision of the sport has to be that high- performance riders make great money at the top and it trickles down; that the top 10 in the United States don’t have to have a trust fund or rich friends to do that.”
But, he added, “It’s a lot of work to get there, and it’s not going to happen overnight. We want to build durability into this model and build it in such a way that it's respectful to the constituency it serves.”
At the end of an acrimonious year in Wellington, Bellissimo’s organization engineered the compilation of the PBIEC as it took control from WEF’s founder, Stadium Jumping Inc., and its chairman, Gene Mische.
During the time that WEP battled with Stadium Jumping amid a tangle of lawsuits, there were those on the sidelines who figured that the newcomer eventually would go away and tradition would prevail, as it so often does in the horse world.
But they didn't know the depth of WEP’s commitment.
“There was no scenario where we were going to give up,” said Bellissimo, who cited the support of his original partners, Dennis Dammerman and Roger Smith, in surviving the conflict.
WEP’s purchase of the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Club from Glen Straub set the stage for an agreement involving more high-powered partners. That agreement led to reconciling with the community and Stadium Jumping’s major players, including Jerry Jacobs and his son, Louis.
Bringing in Craig Lindner, who is well known in the horse show world, and other area landowners, was a key to success.
“We had a blend of old families. Craig, from my perspective, was great. He was calm, soothing, very smart and understood the strategy,” said Bellissimo.
The suits were dropped, the partners got Stadium Jumping’s dates in Wellington, and a new era began.
A Grand Vision
Bellissimo hired former Fédération Equestre Internationale Secretary-General Michael Stone and British horse show impresario Simon Brooks-Ward as high-powered consultants, serving notice that big changes were on the horizon.
