First sustainable obstacle in a European Championship

We are proud to present the first ever sustainable obstacle to be used in a European championship.The obstacle is made from recycled material and will be used during the Longines FEI European Championships in August as well as during Gothenburg Horse Show 2018.

In the lead up to Gothenburg Horse Show 2017, a design competition was announced with the aim to produce a sustainable obstacle. The competition was initiated by Got Event, Lövsta Future Challenge and the Swedish Equestrian Federation.

The winning contribution resulted in an obstacle made with partially sustainable materials and it was used during Gothenburg Horse Show 2017. This project has since been developed further and we can now present a new, fully sustainable obstacle with new design and new materials.

- The materials in this obstacle are recycled fabrics and cardboard, says Maria Sundin, project manager at the Ecoestrian working group at the University of Gothenburg. All parties have approved the draft and the design of the obstacle will reflect the sustainability and environmental aspect, as well as the materials used. This is done, for instance by, designing the wings to resemble a newspaper placard.

– Sustainability is incredibly important to the city of Gothenburg and for the equestrian events Longines FEI European Championships and Gothenburg Horse Show, says Lotta Nibell, CEO Got Event AB. We are proud to work together to create sustainable projects that favour future events as well as the equestrian sports. The events also give us an opportunity to talk about other important issues, such as environmental ones, in order to inspire and increase interest among visitors and stakeholders.

– The level of innovation that has come out of Ecoestrian is something that we are very proud of, the cooperation between the championship organization and Lövsta Future Challenge enables us to show innovative and sustainable development at a championship level, says Gabrielle Bragée, chairman of the environment and sustainability committee of the Swedish Equestrian Federation. The development of the obstacle shows the possibilities of working together, innovation and sustainability awareness that we hope will inspire and stimulate further progress within the equestrian sports.

The new obstacle has been developed in cooperation between Maria Sundin and the Ecoestrian-team at the University of Gothenburg, SWT Development, Lövsta Future Challenge, the Swedish Equestrian Federation and Got Event AB.

The Ecoestrian obstacle project has also resulted in a project in material research focusing on environmentally friendly bio composts, starting this autumn, co-funded by the University of Gothenburg and Sports and Technology at the Chalmers University of Technology.

Contact:
Helena Lindqvist, Marketing manager Longines FEI European Championships Gothenburg 2017, Tel +46 725-41 84 50, helena.lindqvist@goteborg.com

Maria Sundin, Design/production/idea, Equestrian Sports Science, University of Gothenburg Tel +46 702-52 40 50, maria.sundin@physics.gu.se