http://www.kentucky.com/646/index.xml News, sports, and entertainment from Kentucky.com en-us Copyright 2008 Kentucky.com 2010 World Equestrian Games 60 Mon, 01 Dec 2008 03:03:30 EST http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss McClatchy Interactive's Workbench webmaster@kentucky.com http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/600816.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/600816.html Sat, 22 Nov 2008 03:10 EST
John Deere, the iconic tractor maker, will be the official equipment sponsor of the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.

Organizers of the Games announced Friday that the company will provide the games' grounds-care equipment, some of which will remain at Kentucky Horse Park after the Games end in October 2010.

John Deere also will be the title sponsor of the reining competition during the games, said Terry Johnson, vice president of sales for the games.

The sponsorship includes a cash contribution, Johnson said. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/588615.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/588615.html Wed, 12 Nov 2008 09:26 EST
Lexington will throw a 16-day street festival during the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in 2010.

Spotlight Lexington will be Sept. 25, 2010, to Oct. 10, 2010, and will include a number of events held at the Courthouse Plaza, Cheapside Park and Triangle Park in downtown.

Events include live entertainment, food vendors, an arts and crafts fair and live broadcasts of the events at the Kentucky Horse Park .

"What's exciting is there may be many, many things happening," said Penny Ebel, the city's special events director. "There may be something going on at the Opera House, there may be something going on at Rupp Arena, there may be something going on at the Singletary Center. That's what we want, a lot of things for the community to be involved in and a lot of choices for the visitors to make a good experience of their visit to Lexington." ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/565130.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/565130.html Thu, 23 Oct 2008 07:09 EDT
A series of competitions will be held at the Kentucky Horse Park in 2009 and 2010 to test the new arena, stadium and other facilities before the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games are held in 2010, Games organizers said Wednesday.

The competitions will be named The Kentucky Cup. The first will be a reining competition July 15-20, 2009, followed by vaulting July 28-Aug. 2, endurance Sept. 28-30, driving Oct. 1-4 and eventing, jumping and dressage April 20-25, 2010, during the 2010 Rolex Three-Day Event.

"These Kentucky Cup competitions will allow us to test each of our competition facilities well in advance of the 2010 Games, and will give us the opportunity to make modifications and adjustments in our planning based on these tests," said Games Competition Director Kate Jackson.

Related activities, including ticketing, transportation and hospitality, also will be tested at the Kentucky Cup events. More information about each event will be released as it becomes available, the foundation said. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/539537.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/539537.html Mon, 29 Sep 2008 09:20 EDT
It's been two years since the 2006 World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany. It's also two years until the next Games, the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games at the Kentucky Horse Park . the first outside of Europe.

How much progress have the organizers at the World Games 2010 Foundation made in two years?

It's time for the first Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games checkup.

What has happened: Construction of the $24 million outdoor stadium is about seven days behind schedule, thanks to extra blasting needed to remove rock that was found where no one expected it. The $49 million indoor arena is four to six weeks ahead of schedule. Both projects were funded by the state. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/536473.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/536473.html Fri, 26 Sep 2008 06:34 EDT
As the countdown clocks in Lexington reached 729 days Thursday, organizers of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games celebrated "Halfway There" with announcements of a new sponsor and new events next year at the Kentucky Horse Park's $49 million indoor arena.

"Folks, I've got great news; we are halfway there," Horse Park executive director John Nicholson told a crowd of several hundred that gathered at the arena construction site to mark the halfway point between the 2006 Games in Aachen, Germany, and the 2010 Games in Lexington.

Later, the World Games 2010 Foundation announced that Ariat International has agreed to be the "Official Apparel and Footwear Sponsor" for the Games.

Ariat also will be the title sponsor for the Games Volunteer Program and will provide T-shirts and other apparel to the 8,000 volunteers and foundation staffers who are expected to work. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/528404.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/528404.html Fri, 19 Sep 2008 07:08 EDT
There will be no official Kentucky license plate for the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, organizers said Thursday.

Instead there will be an unofficial license plate that can be bought by anyone worldwide that should make more money for the World Games 2010 Foundation.

"We decided it was better to do something that everyone could participate in, not just residents of Kentucky," said Games spokeswoman Amy Walker.

Walker also said that while organizers had received "several hundred" applications toward the 900 required before the state would issue an official license plate, it was clear that 900 would not be received before the foundation's deadline of Sept. 30. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/520588.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/520588.html Fri, 12 Sep 2008 02:58 EDT
Those waiting to buy tickets for the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games will get the news they want during Half Way There, a series of Games-related events and announcements that begins Sept. 22.

The announcements will include schedules for local ticket sales and for the 16 days of competition at the Kentucky Horse Park in 2010 that will decide eight world championships.

Three new corporate sponsors also will be announced, along with new Games merchandise, including a line of unofficial license plates, license plate holders and other items for motor vehicles.

Some 2,000 members of the news media from around the world also will learn the procedure for getting credentials to cover the Games. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/468038.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/468038.html Wed, 23 Jul 2008 08:29 EDT
Cranes and construction trucks are still buzzing around the Kentucky Horse Park, but a new map shows exactly what the park will look like when it hosts the Alltech FEI 2010 World Equestrian Games.

The new design boasts hundreds of thousands of feet in new construction, including a new indoor arena, a new outdoor stadium, a new main entry, and lots of space for exhibitions and shopping.

.While these venue plans may experience some changes between now and 2010, these tentative layouts already illustrate the magnitude and scale of this event, as well as the breadth and scope of our planning,. said Rob Hinkle, vice-president of operations for the World Games 2010 Foundation.

Hinkle is expected to take a leading role in directing the Games since the resignation of foundation director Jack Kelly last week. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/461941.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/461941.html Wed, 16 Jul 2008 05:49 EDT
Jack Kelly, a leading organizer and self-described .public face. of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, announced his resignation Tuesday, effective July 31.

Kelly, 63, who has been chief executive officer of the World Games 2010 Foundation for about two years, said he was stepping down for .several personal reasons,. but he declined to elaborate.

Others, however, said the resignation was health-related.

.He has got some concerns about his energy levels for the next couple of years,. said John Nicholson, executive director of the Kentucky Horse Park where the games will begin Sept. 25, 2010. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/458252.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/458252.html Fri, 11 Jul 2008 02:47 EDT
The countdown clocks say there's 805 days until the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games begin at the Kentucky Horse Park, but a leader of the organizing group warned Thursday that worldwide interest in the games is about to accelerate.

.We are about 90 days away from going 60 miles an hour,. said John Long, chairman of the World Games 2010 Foundation.

Long, who is also CEO of the U.S. Equestrian Federation, reminded foundation directors and staffers at Thursday's board meeting that the Beijing Olympics are less than a month away . Aug. 8-24.

He said competitors will begin shipping horses next week to Hong Kong where Olympic equestrian events . show jumping, dressage and eventing . will be held. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/453623.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/453623.html Sun, 06 Jul 2008 06:56 EDT
July 30: Alan Jackson at Applebee's Park, Lexington.

Sept. 9: An Evening With Liza Minnelli at Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts, Louisville.

Oct. 4: Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis at Singletary Center, Lexington.

Oct. 23: Song and Dance Ensemble of West Africa at Singletary Center. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/453622.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/453622.html Sun, 06 Jul 2008 04:28 EDT
Seven concerts and performances have been booked for the Alltech Festival in 2008 and three more for 2009, but the program's director says that's just the beginning.

.We are going to see if we can pull off a big one in 2009. that will lead up to a statewide entertainment crescendo surrounding the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in 2010, said Thomas Stephens.

Stephens' boss, Alltech President Pearse Lyons, spoke of U2, The Eagles or maybe even The Rolling Stones when he introduced the idea of the festival in January.

Stephens, 33, a Lexington native and Loyola-trained lawyer, won't promise to reach such lofty heights after being on the job just two months. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/611159.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/611159.html Mon, 01 Dec 2008 03:01 EST
The World Equestrian Games Foundation has decided to allow Tennessee walking horses to join in demonstrations at the 2010 World Games, not in spite of, but perhaps because of controversies that has surrounded the breed.

"We have agreed that they will be participating, and I think it's a good thing," said John Long, WEG Foundation chairman and CEO of the U.S. Equestrian Federation.

But the participation comes with a mandate: "We will not be embarrassed. I will not allow any demonstration event, any participation in any way, to embarrass and put the WEG at risk," Long said.

He said the history of abuse of the breed and recent events in Kentucky originally made him wary of allowing walking horses. ]]> http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/610721.html http://www.kentucky.com/646/story/610721.html Sun, 30 Nov 2008 06:53 EST
She lives in perhaps the most glittering place on earth, but as a child she dreamed of a green countryside with horses . a place she caught glimpses of in children's fiction.

She called it "horse heaven ... my escape and the place I dreamed of."

It is called Kentucky.

You might not yet know her name. But you will be hearing a lot more about her soon. ]]>