JOIN USRiders keen to lift profile of sport
Battling various odds, three riders from the Embassy International Riding School (EIRS) here -- Ajai Appachu, Fouaad Mirza and Nadia Haridass -- have achieved something special.
The trio, whose passion for horses runs in the blood, have secured the right to represent the country in equestrian at the upcoming Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.
While Appachu and Mirza will be taking part in eventing discipline, Nadia will pit her skills in dressage at the September 19-October 4 continental bash.
“As you are aware, equestrian is a very niche sport and it is extremely hard to stay competitive,” said Appachu at a media briefing here on Thursday. “Unlike racing which is so popular across the country, equestrian is somewhat a poor sibling. It’s an expensive sport and thanks to Jitu Virwani (the managing director and chairman of Embassy Group and owner of EIRS), we are able to realise our dream.
“The talent is definitely there in India but the problem is we don’t have great horses. Equestrian needs horses that are more skilled, not thoroughbreds that are needed for racing. Importing the horses costs a lot and without Jitu we would have not reached this level,” added the 34-year-old Appachu, who trains near Leicestershire in United Kingdom.
Despite the hardships facing them, Nadia, who trains in Dusseldorf, Germany, felt a strong show at the Asian Games will provide a major boost to the sport.
“We are really banking on the Asian Games. We feel it is a great opportunity for us to take the sport forward. If we could put up a strong show, maybe the government will start to show more interest in us and more funds will start pouring in.” The 26-year-old, set to ride Toronto at the Asiad, felt Qatar and Japan could provide stiff competition.
“Qatar has invested millions in the recent past. They’ve been able to import top-notch horses from Germany, France etc. So even if their riders aren’t that talented, it kind of covers up. Japan have been doing well too. We’ve been training hard and our results have been really encouraging. We are quite confident.”
The soft-spoken Mirza felt good quality competitions in the recent past have spurred them to aspire big at Incheon. “All of us have competed against Olympians over the last few months. It’s heartening to have achieved the qualification marks in some key events. We are improving really well and hope to do good at the Asian Games,” said the 22-year-old who will be piloting Penultimate Vision.