SAGA SHOP - Haust I Fall 2019

28 Icelandair Stopover The 25 th World Championships for Icelandic Horses were held in Berlin, August 4–11. A biennial event, this is where all the best riders and best Icelandic horses gather to compete in various disciplines. It’s different from most other equestrian championships because the biggest focus is on the five gaits of the Ice- landic horse and riding style rather than speed, in disciplines such as tölt , four gait and five gait. However, there are also races— in flying pace. Flying High The Icelandic riders and horses certainly “flew” down the track with the Icelandic team winning all the pace disciplines: Konráð Valur Sveinsson and stallion Losti frá Ekru won the 100-m pace race, Guðmundur Björgvinsson and Glúmur frá Þóroddsstöðum the 250-m pace race, while Teitur Árnason and Dynfari frá Steinnesi became world champions in pace test and Benjamín Sandur Ingólfsson and Messa frá Káragerði won the young riders’ pace test. The stars of the show were Jóhann Rúnar Skúlason and pristine white stallion Finnbogi frá Minni-Reykjum, triple world champions in tölt, four gait and four gait combination. Jóhann was also awarded for best riding style. Overall, Iceland claimed six golds in the adult disciplines, one in the youth disciplines and four for its breeding horses. As the highest scoring team, Iceland claimed the team trophy on top of the 11 gold medals. Small, Sturdy and Smooth The Icelandic horse is a small and sturdy breed that has been pure bred in Iceland for about 1,000 years. It was used for traveling across rugged terrain and therefore devel- oped a special four-beat lateral gait called tölt, which is without suspension and incredi- bly smooth. Flying pace is also a specialty of the Icelandic horse, a two-beat lateral move- ment without suspension—both smooth and fast: (for more information, go to horsesoficeland.is ) . Today, the Icelandic horse is mostly used for sport and recreation. Its popularity outside Iceland is growing; there are Icelandic horse associations in 21 countries, all of which are eligible to send national teams to the World Championships. The Championships are held in a member country of FEIF, the International Federation of Icelandic Horse Associations (which cele- brates its 50 th anniversary this year), but never in Iceland. To protect the breed from foreign diseases, no horse can travel to Iceland, meaning that the horses that compete for Iceland can never return. Iceland holds its own national championships instead, the Landsmót, which is held every other year opposite the World Championships—in 2020 in Hella in South Iceland. Clockwise from top: Triple world champions Jóhann Rúnar Skúlason and Finnbogi frá Minni-Reykjum demonstrating tölt; young rider Ásdís Ósk Elvarsdóttir and Koltinna frá Varmalæk after winning the silver in four gait combination; Bergþór Eggertsson compet- ing in pace test on Besti frá Upphafi.