As the curtain was coming down on the 29th FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final in Las Vegas, thoughts were already beginning to turn to the 2007/2008 finale which will be staged in the city considered to be the true home of World Cup show jumping - Gothenburg, Sweden.

At a press conference, FEI Secretary General, Michael Stone, pointed out that "next season is the 30th anniversary of the series and the Western European League will carry the Rolex FEI World Cup™ Jumping title. The final will take place in Gothenburg which has a tremendous reputation for the quality of its organization and which has made a big contribution to the development of the series."

This will be the 12th final to be held in the famous Scandinavian Arena which attracts one of the most knowledgeable and enthusiastic audiences in the world to its annual fixture. It was at the inaugural event at the Swedish venue back in 1979 that the coveted World Cup trophy was first held aloft, and it was Austria's Hugo Simon who claimed the honors on that occasion riding Gladstone.

The city of Gothenburg, or Goteborg as it is known closer to home, was founded in 1621 by King Gustav II Adolf and built by Dutch architects. It was initially dominated by Holland, Germany, Scotland and England which is possibly why it is sometimes called Little London or Swedish Amsterdam. Located on the west coast of Sweden and with a long sea-faring tradition it is equidistant to its own capital city of Stockholm and the capital cities of Oslo in Norway and Copenhagen in Denmark.

The Gothia Towers, which is attached to the Scandinavian Arena, will once again be the show hotel and for any further information about the 2007/2008 Rolex FEI World Cup™ Jumping Final which takes place from April 23-27, 2008, you can check out the website www.goteborghorseshow.com or contact Mayvor Thorin of Got Event at [email protected], Tel: 46 (0) 31615678, or Lotta Amnestal, Press Officer for the Swedish Equestrian Federation at [email protected], Tel: 46 (0) 709795635.

You can download the rules for the FEI World Cup Jumping from the FEI website at www.feiworldcup.org.

FEI World Cup™ Jumping has entered its 29th season. The series, created in 1978, today comprises 14 leagues on all continents. The best riders from 132 preliminary competitions will qualify for the final in Las Vegas (U.S.), which takes place from April 19-22, 2007. The title holder is Germany's Marcus Ehning.

The Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI), founded in 1921, is the international body governing equestrian sport recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and includes 133 National Federations.

Equestrian sport has been on the Olympic program since 1912 with three disciplines - jumping, dressage and eventing. It is one of the very few sports in which men and women compete on equal terms It is also the only sport which involves two athletes - horse and rider. The FEI has relentlessly concerned itself with the welfare of the horse, which is paramount and must never be subordinated to competitive or commercial influences.

Malina Gueorguiev

ENDS
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