Wellington is in the running to play host to the 2018 World Equestrian Games. The village was named last week with four other communities around the world as a contender to host the event. The World Equestrian Games were held every four years in a European city, until the games made their U.S. debut in 2010 when they were staged in Lexington, Ky.
The 2014 games will be held in Normandy, France. Wellington joins Rabat, Morocco; Bromont, Canada; Budapest, Hungary; and Vienna, Austria on the short list for the 2018 games.
According to Equestrian Sport Productions President Michael Stone said. “In the horse world, this event is considered bigger than the Olympics.”
“I think to have the Olympics of the equestrian world in Wellington would be a great thing if we could handle it.”
Wellington Mayor Bob Margolis said. “One concern I’ve heard from the equestrian community is that the games are held during hurricane season.”
George Linley, executive director of the Palm Beach County Sports Commission, said that he is very excited about the prospect of Wellington hosting the event. Linley said that the equestrian industry is one of the county’s greatest assets. “The equestrian season is one of the premier events,” he said. “It’s one of the largest events of any kind that take place in the county.”
UPDATE: On Monday lost its chance to host the Olympics of equestrian sport when the group working to bring it here in 2018 dropped out of the running for the event.
Equestrian Sport Productions blamed its decision squarely on a lack of support from village council members