Olympia outlines plans for Valegro’s retirement ceremony

The organisers of Olympia have confirmed what Carl Hester revealed earlier this month – Valegro’s official retirement ceremony will take place at the show on Wednesday 14 December.

The retirement will follow the FEI World Cup Dressage Freestyle competition, in what’s bound to be an emotional ceremony for dressage fans as well as the famous gelding’s connections.

“Valegro has done it all and we want him to go out in style,” said Carl. “What better place than at Olympia – he loves the arena and being so close to the crowd. It is where he and Charlotte broke the world record in 2014 and it is the perfect place for our loyal British fans to say their farewell.”

But if you haven’t been able to secure tickets for the Wednesday evening performance, don’t despair – on Tuesday 13 December Carl Hester and Charlotte Dujardin will be taking part in a Q&A session, with an appearance by Valegro.

The audience will be invited to submit their questions in advance and selected spectators will be able to ask the questions in person.

“We are honoured that Charlotte and Carl have chosen Olympia as the place to retire Valegro,” said
Show Director, Simon Brooks-Ward. “He is a true legend of equestrian sport and we will make sure that he has the perfect send-off. We wanted as many people as possible to have the opportunity to see Valegro and hope that his fans are able to make one of the performances.”

Olympia, the London International Horse Show, will once again host three FEI World Cup legs in carriage driving, dressage and showjumping as well as a host of other showjumping events and fun displays.

The show takes place from 13-19 December – to book tickets visit www.olympiahorseshow.com or telephone the box office on 0871 230 5580.

Horse & Country will be at Olympia, bringing you daily reports, videos and up-the-minute news from the show. Our coverage is brought to you in association with Spillers Horse Feeds. We’ll also be showing extensive television highlights following the event – watch on Sky channel 253 or on H&C Play.