Latest news
28 November 2008
Experian to help boost Macmillan Fundraising at first Express Eventing International Cup
On Sunday 30 November a team of volunteers from Experian will be helping raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support, Experian’s Charity of the Year, at the first Express Eventing International Cup at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium.
In June 2008, Experian announced that its UK employees had chosen Macmillan as its Charity of the Year. Sunday’s fundraising drive in Cardiff is another example of how Experian’s volunteering scheme is helping to raise £100,000 for the national charity.
John Peace, Experian’s chairman and equestrian enthusiast, and former Australian international rider Stuart Buntine are behind the new competition, which has the aim of broadening the appeal of eventing and creating innovation within the sport. The riders taking part in the Express Eventing International Cup include: Olympians Mary King and William Fox-Pitt and celebrities Jodie Kidd and Tara Palmer-Tomkinson. Guest judges on Sunday also include Andrew Lloyd-Webber and Arlene Phillips, one of the judges on BBC1’s Strictly Come Dancing show.
Experian’s volunteers will be taking part in various fundraising activities for Macmillan throughout the day. With thousands attending the event, the proceeds from raffle ticket sales and radio headsets sold to spectators will go to Experian’s Charity of the Year. The money raised will help Macmillan to improve the lives of people affected by cancer across the UK, providing practical, emotional, medical and financial support.
John Peace commented: “Supporting charities, whether at a local or national level, sits at the heart of Experian’s business. We are tremendously proud to be involved with Macmillan, so it was only natural that we wanted to involve them in the International Cup. I know our volunteers will do an excellent job on Sunday to help us towards our target of raising £100,000 for Macmillan.”
Macmillan Cancer Support’s Chief Executive, Ciarán Devane, said: “We would like to thank John Peace and Experian for using the Express Eventing International Cup to help raise money for Macmillan. The money raised by Experian’s volunteers will help us to continue supporting people affected by cancer by providing vital services including counselling centres, specialist Macmillan medical staff, and financial advisors.”
For more information and to buy tickets for Express Eventing International Cup, go to www.eeicup.com <http://www.eeicup.com> or call the Express Eventing Ticketmaster hotline 08705 582582.
ends
In association with British Eventing
For further information, please contact
Express Eventing
Helen Barklam
01772 316924
07917 148900
Email: helen.barklam@tricornevents.com
Notes to editors
Express Eventing brings together the world’s top event riders to compete in a thrilling new compact version of the sport.
For the first time, spectators will be able to see all the action from one seat in a dramatic arena environment. They will be able to watch and compare the performance of every rider at every stage of the competition.
Expert commentaries, a new scoring system and state-of-the-art stadium technology will enable spectators to follow the progress of competitors, knowing exactly what each needs to do to win.
The competition starts with a freestyle dressage programme, set to music, where horse and rider are judged not only on the degree of difficulty, but on artistic interpretation. Competitors then enter the combined jumping stage, a first for eventing. After the last show jump is completed, a ‘pit-stop’ tack change enables horse and rider to prepare for the challenges of the cross-country course.
Rider who have signed up to take part in Express Eventing are:
British - Tina Cook, Mary King, William Fox-Pitt, Lucy Wiegersma, Oliver Townend
Australian - Clayton Fredericks, Lucinda Fredericks
New Zealand – Mark Todd, Andrew Nicholson, Caroline Powell
China – Alex Hua Tian
Belgian - Karin Donckers
Germany - Dirk Schrade, Bettina Hoy
France - Nicolas Touzaint, Rodolphe Scherer
Italy - Vittoria Panizzon
Sweden - Linda Algotsson
American - Philip Dutton, Buck Davidson
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