The Men Behind The Olympic Cross-Country Meet The Media

17 March 2008

The two masterminds behind the Olympic equestrian cross-country course plus the man who will make it all happen at Games time in August met with the media at Beas River on 17 March to explain the brains and the brawn that create a true Olympic cross-country course.

Course designer Mike Etherington-Smith, course builder David Evans and Technical Delegate Giuseppe della Chiesa briefed almost 60 media representatives, including six television stations on how they work together to produce the right level of challenge for an Olympic course within the limitations imposed by the Hong Kong climate.

Etherington-Smith, the first cross-country course designer ever to officiate at two Olympic Games (Sydney 2000 and Beijing 2008), gave details on the thought process behind the course design for this year's Olympic equestrian events and explained how the Beas River venue is unique.

"It's very different to Sydney," he told the media. "It's more compact, so it's better for spectators and more convenient for television. It will look spectacular on television."

The briefing took place on the site where the air-conditioned temporary stabling will be erected for the Olympic horses to stay on the night before the cross-country. The area is currently being used by course builder Evans as one of his workshops, and the media were particularly impressed by the three dragon heads that Evans has been carving ¡V with a chainsaw!

Etherington-Smith, who included Aboriginal designs in his course for the Sydney Olympics, stressed how he likes to include some cultural elements reflecting local heritage and traditions in his courses, hence the dragons for the Hong Kong track. The Great Wall and a pair of chopsticks will also feature on a course that will play a major role in deciding the Olympic eventing medals.

Both Etherington-Smith and della Chiesa detailed how the track could be shortened in the event of inclement weather, "but altogether, it will still be a real Olympic course", della Chiesa stressed.

Etherington-Smith also emphasised the importance of the footing. "The Jockey Club's knowledge and expertise on the footing has been fantastic," he said. "In a funny way, the wetter it is, the better it is. We don't mind the rain in this sport."

And in extreme weather, contingency days have been built into the schedule so that the competition can be postponed for a day if necessary, della Chiesa told the journalists.

Evans, the man who interprets Etherington-Smith's designs, then demonstrated how he not only puts together the solid timber fences, but also how he creates intricate woodcarvings with his chainsaw. After years of wanting to get to the Olympics, Evans is finally realising his dream by building the cross-country course for Beijing 2008, but he and his team still have plenty of work to do before the 2 June deadline when all the fences must be in position out on the Hong Kong Golf course. Even after that there are still two full months of hard labour to get all the finishing touches done by 2 August, with the Ground Jury (the officials in charge of judging the competition) due to inspect the course on 6 August.