January 20, 2007

Olympians Headline 2007 Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) Press Conference Set for Tuesday, January 23rd at 12 Noon

Wellington, FL – 2004 Athens Olympic Gold Medalist Rodrigo Pessoa of Brazil headlines a star-studded panel of equestrians set to appear at the 2007 Winter Equestrian (WEF) Press Conference is scheduled for Tuesday, January 23 at 12 p.m. at the Palm Beach Polo Equestrian Center on Pierson Road in Wellington. This year’s event will be held at the beautiful Jockey Club Pavilion, located ringside at the Internationale Arena. The 2007 Winter Equestrian Festival kicks off the following day on Wednesday.

Pessoa, who won the 2006 $200,000 Budweiser American Invitational, will be joined at the head table by United States Olympic Gold and Silver Medalist Leslie Howard, and Canadian Olympian and World Cup Champion Mario Deslauriers. Also on this year’s panel is Brianne Goutal, one of America’s fastest rising and successful young equestrians, having completed a junior career that saw her win all four major national equitation finals. Arlene ‘Tuny’ Page and Melissa Taylor will be there to answer questions representing the discipline of Dressage and Eugene R. Mische, the President of Stadium Jumping, Inc. the producers of the Winter Equestrian Festival, will also field questions.

The 2007 Winter Equestrian Festival, offering over $4 million dollars in prize money, celebrates its thirty-fifth year as the nation’s longest running and largest equestrian series. This year’s WEF will be one of the largest and most competitive ever and will be one of the most important on record with a host of new and exciting events. In addition to the always exciting weekly Thursday and Sunday Grand Prix events, the Global Champions Tour, a dynamic series of international show jumping events, makes its 2007 season debut at the Winter Equestrian Festival. The Rolex World Cup Finals are in Las Vegas, Nevada, this year and the final qualifying events are right here at the Winter Equestrian Festival.

The WEF Press Conference begins at 12 p.m. sharp. Lunch will be served. Golf cart transportation from the main entrance to the Jockey Club will be provided.

PHOTO CREDIT: Rodrigo Pessoa and Baloubet du Rouet winning the 2006 Budweiser American Invitational at the Winter Equestrian Festival. Photo ©2006 Randi Muster.