Rolex Kentucky 2009
Rolex Kentucky 2009
Apr 22nd, 09
March 5, 2009 - The Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, set to return to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, April 23-26, is pleased to announce that NBC will broadcast a one-hour program on the CCI**** on Sunday, May 3. This marks the sixth straight year that NBC is airing coverage of the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event.
In addition to the NBC telecast, the final round of the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event will air live on Sunday, April 26 on Universal Sports Network (USN), a new member of the NBC family of networks.
There also will be extensive international television coverage when the world's best horses and riders meet in Kentucky and vie for their share of $250,000 in prize money and a chance at the $350,000 Rolex Grand Slam of Eventing. EuroSport will air coverage in some 54 countries on May 6 at 7:00 pm local time.
Additional European coverage will be provided by CNBC Europe and CNBC Asia, and ESPN STAR Asia also will air a one-hour highlight show, extending the reach worldwide.
"NBC has been a wonderful supporter of equestrian sports and of our event and we are excited that they once again will make it possible for people across the country to be front row spectators right from their living rooms," said Jane Atkinson, Executive Vice President of Equestrian Events Inc. which produces the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event. "Our international broadcasts bring our event to Europe and Asia and give audiences around the world a chance to see how exciting Eventing can be."
Supplementing these telecasts will be live webcasts of this year's event. Eventing fans will have the opportunity to watch live action from one of the world's most prestigious equestrian events on Pay-Per View Webcasts on www.rk3de.org, featuring coverage of Dressage on April 23-24 and of Cross Country on April 25. Free live coverage of the Show Jumping on April 26 will be available online at www.universalsports.com.
The Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, part of the HSBC FEI ClassicsTM Series, will run a CCI**** and the 12th championship for the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation Pinnacle Cup, signifying the zenith in Eventing competition in the United States. The event draws over 100,000 spectators.
Classic Communications for Equestrian Events, Inc.
GENERAL ADMISSION PARKING
General Admission Parking, a separate daily fee previously, has now been incorporated into the ticket price. This means that you will no longer have to pay a parking fee each day, and the option to purchase a General Admission parking card in advance is no longer necessary. We hope that this change will help to move you into the General Admission Parking area of the Horse Park Campground and to a parking spot more quickly since you will not have to stop to pay the parking fee.
THE NEW OUTDOOR STADIUM
The construction of the new outdoor stadium at the Kentucky Horse Park, where the Dressage and Jumping Tests will be conducted at Rolex Kentucky, is necessitating some sweeping changes for spectators for 2009 and beyond.
While the new stadium is in the same location as the arena previously used for Rolex Kentucky Dressage and Show Jumping, it will be a whole new experience for spectators as well as horses and riders.
Permanent Park Grandstand
The area where the Patron Club and Equestrian Club tents and their temporary grandstand seating were located (north side of stadium) is now the new permanent Park Grandstand, with 7,289 chair seats, 4,630 of which will be covered. An additional 102 seats will be available for disabled seating.
Patron Club and Equestrian Club Tents Moved
Due to its size, the new Park Grandstand utilizes all the ground from the edge of the stadium arena back to Nina Bonnie Boulevard, ground where the Patron Club and Equestrian Club tents were located. The Patron Club and Equestrian Club tents are being relocated across Nina Bonnie Boulevard to along the fenceline surrounding the High Hope Steeplechase Course. The tents will overlook the infield of the course, where several major obstacles on the Rolex Kentucky Cross-Country course are located.
Two 9' high video screens will be located in each tent.
Grandstand seating for Patron Club and Equestrian Club subscribers will be an additional charge, allowing these Event attendees to choose which grandstand seating they prefer (covered or uncovered) and purchase seats with friends who are not Club subscribers.
East Side of Stadium
The East side of the stadium, where temporary grandstands have been located, will now be used for the Patron Plus tent, a private hospitality tent, and a grandstand for Riders, Owners, Grooms and Competitor Guests.
South Side of Stadium
The covered Lake Grandstand has been dismantled, with each piece carefully and painstakingly labeled so that it can be reconstructed in a new location following the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.
The configuration of the lake side of the stadium is changed, and two grandstands with increased seating will be located here along with the Doggery, the grandstand targeted especially for dogs and their human companions.
West Side of Stadium
The permanent Sponsor Hospitality Pavilion, previously located on the north side of the arena, has made way for the new Park Grandstand, requiring creating a new Sponsor Pavilion on the west side of the arena. The West Grandstand that was located near the lake remains in the same relative position, but in 2009 in height by one row (36 rows) and in width by 6'.
Be sure to study the new grandstand layout included in the Ticket Information section of this website before placing your order for reserved grandstand seats.
30TH ANNIVERSARY COMMEMORATIVE DVD NOW AVAILABLE!
In 1978, over the course of four very hot & humid days, an enthusiastic crowd of over 170,000 converged upon the new Kentucky Horse Park to attend the World Three-Day Event Championships.
Fast forward to 2008, thirty years have passed by…a container of old film is discovered deep in the confines of Equestrian Events, Inc. storage room. Having no idea what it held, Jane Atkinson, Executive Vice President of EEI, decided to have the film converted. Little did she know what a wonderful piece of Eventing history she’d resurrected…As originally narrated by Bruce Davidson, we invite you to go back in time to see where and how it all began.
To order, click on the DVD cover image.