With a certain delay in respect to last year’s election and verdict which took place during the CHI-Geneva at Palexpo, the Jury of this second edition of the « Horse of the World Special Award » only pronounced on the occasion of the « Mercedes-CSI Zurich 2014 » at the Hallenstadion in the Swiss banking capital.

Questioned about the reasons for having thus displaced the date of this announcement, Jamil Boukarabila put it this way : « It is, of course, with great regret on our part that the horse show in Geneva was no longer able to be the venue of this announcement. We are obliged to follow the change which indeniably puts, from now on, the great horse show of Zurich as one of the major events of the international scene in the discipline, in front of all the Swiss horse shows. The engagement and visibility of the very first sponsors at Zurich, Mercedes-Benz for a long time, but also Rolex until last year since associated with the final of the World Show-Jumping Cup, and so many others, also convinced us to make this choice. Even so it is necessary to point out that probably, in order to remain in the Swiss Romande, we would have opted for the LONGINE GLOBAL CHAMPIONS TOUR of Jan Tops at Lausanne, if i twas not held so late in the season.

At this beginning of 2014, horse lovers, and enthusiasts of Equidae in general, welcomed with surprise but enthusiasm the announcement of the result of this prize for the second year awarded to an original enterprise where Equidae are kings, above all economics interests and the recommendations of the usual circles engaged in competitions at the highest level. The Beni-Ammar Festival, but ther also its courageous, innovative Moroccan inhabitants in the spirit of their enterprise are thus the winners of this second « Horses of the World Special Award ».

Here is the official annoucement of the jury of Horses of the World, made public at the awarding of the prizes of the Mercedes Classic-Longines FEI World Cup (which crowned Toulago and his rider Pius Schwizer, who again entered the Top Ten) : « Horses of the World has the great Honour this year of awarding its prize also, to all the participants, contributors, creators and visitors to the Beni-Ammar Festival, and, through themselves, to the wonderful Moroccan people who managed to reconcile Modernity with the « poor parent » of Grand Prix horses, doubtlessly the people of today with most deserving four-legged companions of their ancestors. And all this, in the framework of a great cultural assembly, in a small city on a mountain side, that of Moulay Driss Zerhoune, near to the imperial Moroccan town of Meknès. This recognition on the part of our media is thus to reward the Mohammed Bellemou cousins, choristers of the Moroccan Culture and protectors of the most injustly contempted animal in the course of our history ».

People interested in encouraging, participating or simply in obtaining more information, may contact Mohammed Bellemou, joint-founder and organisor of the Festival of Beni-Ammar. Here are de details :

Mohamed Belmou
Journaliste
Tél : +212 6 61 86 97 11