It’s not just the Premiership that is the home of big money transfers anymore; the FEI deadline for horses and riders to be declared for each nation ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. And this impending deadline of 15th January seems to have bought with it scenes akin to Sky Sports News Deadline Day news coverage.
Quarrycrest Echo & Piggy French, FEI European Championships, Luhmuhlen 2019
Recent, assumed big money, transfers have included Cekatinka, Fischer Chipmunk FRH, Superstition, Creevagh Cooley and most recently bought the biggest news of all to Team GBR supporters last month: Quarrycrest Echo, the dependable chestnut gelding who has helped propel Team GBR to Team Gold at WEG and Team Silver at the Europeans this summer, has left Piggy’s yard in a big transfer deal.
Red, as he is affectionately known, has joined Team Japan.
Quarrycrest Echo & Piggy French, FEI European Championships, Luhmuhlen 2019
Team Japan have been busy building an enviable team of top horses - Cekatinka joined them last year, along with Vinci de la Vigne and now Red has joined them too. An enviable yard of stars.
Team GB can’t be too down in the mouth though, they have benefitted from Superstition leaving New Zealander Lucy Jackson’s yard and going to Harry Meade’s stable.
Lucy Jackson & Superstition, Chatsworth, May 2019
Personally it rather leaves a tiny sour taste in the mouth....
It, in a small part, appears that medals are being ‘bought’ rather than the traditional buy them young, put hours/weeks/months/years into schooling them and hope one day you have a championship winner in the yard. Whilst this is nothing new, the trend seems to be increasing.
As much as you can expect these high level transfers, ones at this end of the sport are rare . Mostly I’m guessing due to money, Quarrycrest Echo will not have come cheap - £millions I can only imagine. The supply will also be a factor, there aren’t an abundance of top level horses that people wish to part with.
If you want to make money, Event horses aren’t the typical place to look, very few manage to break even let alone make a notable investment return. So who can blame owners when they have the chance to finally see their investment mature. These chances rarely come along, if ever, so they must be taken.
Team GBR’s loss is most definitely Team Japan’s gain - Red has a fantastic championship record. Whilst I really hope he fulfils his potential for his new Team, there will be a tinge of sadness watching him in Tokyo.
But what success does this move bring, last years big-money transfer of Cooley SRS to Australian rider Hazel Shannon’s yard hasn’t bought the assumed 5* success, with ‘Aero’ an absentee from Adelaide’s big showpiece.
Although the German machine that is Michael Jung did achieve a Silver Individual & Team Gold at the Europeans with Fischer Chipmunk FRH less than 12 months after the horse moved to his yard.
Michael Jung & Fischer Chipmunk FRH, FEI European Championships, Luhmuhlen 2019
Will a recently bought team really bring home the medals - the allure of equestrian sports, more so Eventing in particular is the dynamic partnership that riders build with their horses over a long period of time - can this really be achieved with only less than 9 months till Tokyo?
Can a medal-winning partnership be fast-tracked? Will Team Japan deliver a medal for the home nation?