No Wiesbaden leg for ERM IN 2020

Event Rider Masters Ltd and Wiesbadener Reit- & Fahr-Club e.V. confirmed today that the 2020 edition of the Event Rider Masters series will not include a leg at the Longines Pfingsturnier Wiesbaden due to calendar clashes with other key FEI events.

Wiesbaden has featured on the ERM calendar since 2017 and is popular with both riders and fans. Wiesbaden attracts huge crowds who enjoy the unique stadium atmosphere created in the Biebrich Palace Schloss Park.

The Wiesbaden Pfingsturnier has been running for 83 years and has always run on the Pentecostal Whit Sunday. The 2020 Whit Sunday date moves the Wiesbaden Pfingsturnier to a very busy time of year in the European FEI Eventing Calendar, combined with the inclusion of the Tokyo Olympics in the 2020 Eventing Season, it is mutually agreed by Wiesbaden and ERM that the 2020 date will not provide a suitable date for the majority of ERM Riders.

Confirming the change for 2020, ERM Chief Executive, Jim O’Toole commented:

"We are deeply disappointed not to be returning to the Wiesbaden Pfingsturnier in 2020, as our organising team, riders, and fans all enjoy the exceptional event and atmosphere of Wiesbaden. The changes to the domestic calendar in Germany means that we could not guarantee a field of top level riders and horses at Wiesbaden in 2020. It is important that every leg of the Masters series provides a top field of competitors and we would not wish to bring a weakened ERM field of competitors to an event as prestigious and as important as Wiesbaden. We are planning to have the Event Rider Masters return to Wiesbaden in 2021. We thank our colleagues at Wiesbadener Reit- & Fahr-Club e.V. and our German fans for their understanding."

The 2020 ERM calendar will be announced in due course.