On May 3, members of the Board of Directors of Stadium Jumping Inc., announced that they have reached an agreement with the Wellington Preserve Corporation (www.wellingtonpreserve.com) to relocate the Wellington, Fla., portion of the Winter Equestrian Festival to a 179-acre parcel of land located within the Wellington Preserve.

In 2006, the WEF at Wellington encompassed eight weeks of competition, hosted a Nations Cup and multiple World Cup-qualifiers.  The new location is on 50th Street, between 120th and 130th Avenues, and within the city limits of Wellington.  Mapquest.com directions from the old showgrounds to the new location indicate a traveling distance of approximately 4 ½ miles.  See previous In The Country articles on Dec. 8 and Jan. 26 about the controversy. 

“This is an important announcement for the community and for the equestrians who love our shows and have been so supportive of Stadium Jumping and our efforts over the years.  It was always our hope to stay in Wellington.  With this new location, not only are we staying in Wellington, but we are also going to build a truly world-class showgrounds with outstanding facilities, stables, parking, and other infrastructure that will be one of the finest equestrian facilities in the world,” said Gene Mische, Stadium Jumping Inc., president.

John Long, the CEO of the U.S. Equestrian Federation, said, “The new license agreements between the U.S. Equestrian Federation and Stadium Jumping allow for a complete and orderly transfer of the existing event dates to the new facility.  Stadium Jumping has also committed to the U.S. Equestrian Federation that it will maintain the current showgrounds in a world-class manner during the interim period.”

Stadium Jumping officials have created a Planning and Design Committee, including numerous equestrians—such as Joe Fargis, John Madden, Linda Hough, Jimmy Torano, Geoff Teall, Louise Serio and Leo Conroy—to consult on the design of the grounds, being developed by Robert Jolicoeur.  The new showgrounds will include 10 competition rings, including a grand prix field and derby field of at least 4 acres each.  There are also plans for a covered arena.  Stadium Jumping plans to include sufficient stall space for all participants and claims to assure that all horses and grooms will be within a quarter mile of the show rings.  Preliminary site plans can be viewed at www.wellingtonpreserve.com.