It’s probably a pretty good bet that eventer Lauren Kieffer never expected to model for W Magazine, and Boyd Martin didn’t have a TIME magazine reporter on his list as a potential student.
But that’s just what happened on June 27, as members of the U.S. Olympic Eventing Team traveled to New York City for a unique press conference. They took a few hours to give the mainstream media an inside introduction to the sport of eventing.
The event took place at Riverdale Equestrian Center in the Bronx and featured team members including Kieffer, Phillip Dutton, Martin and Clark Montgomery as well as coach David O’Connor.
David O’Connor spoke with Sean Gregory of TIME magazine at the far left, while dressage demo rider Lindsay Kellock talked to other reporters at the media outing. Photo by Amber Heintzberger
Media outlets in attendance included the Wall Street Journal, TIME, NBC Sports, NBCOlympics.com, USA Today, the Associated Press, WNBC (a NYC affiliate) and News 12—Bronx. Riverdale Equestrian Center is a public riding stable located in Van Cortland Park and the longtime base of Olympic dressage rider Ashley Holzer.
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The two-hour event featured a description of the sport of eventing; a question-and-answer session facilitated by Leah Oliveto, communications director for the USEF; and ridden demonstrations in dressage, show jumping and cross-country with horses and riders from Riverdale.
Topics in the Q&A included horse and rider fitness, health and safety measures for travel to Brazil, funding for the sport, owners and syndication, and questions about how the riders became interested in horses and developed their skills to the Olympic level.
Following the demonstrations there was time for interviews and a little fun: Kieffer sported her pinque coat for a photo shoot with W Magazine, while Boyd Martin gave Sean Gregory of TIME magazine a quick riding lesson, the video of which is already making the rounds on social media.
Gregory pointed out that TIME’s Facebook fan base numbers nearly 10 million, and videos such as this one get vast exposure to a mainstream audience, which is exactly the purpose of this event. He also explained that the interviews filmed today will be useful for creating highlight coverage during the Olympic Games.
Boyd Martin (right) chatting with Sean Gregory of TIME magazine. Photo by Amber Heintzberger
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Gregory lives just a few blocks from Riverdale Equestrian Center and enjoys running in Van Cortland Park, where the stables are located. He covers sports for TIME and said, “I’ve done a few of these participatory pieces and hope it will encourage viewers try it too.”
Dutton, who will be representing the United States at the Olympic Games for the third time in Rio and has experienced many changes in how equestrian sport is covered in the media, said, “This really shows that the Olympics are a great spectacle that attract sports fans from around the world. Social media and live streaming have helped our sport grow, since you can watch big events live from anywhere in the world. We’ve become more entertaining and audience-friendly over the years, and hopefully that’ll keep growing.”
As O’Connor pointed out, equestrian sports have their own specific jargon, so breaking things down so that the average reader or viewer could better understand the sport of eventing was another goal of the session. “It’s the same with gymnastics or automotives or whatever—we have to make sure we’re speaking in language that everyone can understand.”
Dressage rider Lindsay Kellock demonstrated some movements for spectators and the mainstream press. Photo by Amber Heintzberger
O’Connor, who has attended every Olympic Games since Seoul in 1988 and represented the USA twice in eventing—winning team silver in Atlanta and individual gold and team bronze in Sydney—said, “I think it’s important to have this because it demystifies the whole relationship. These riders are athletes who have studied their craft and the horses are athletes who in their own way have studied their craft to get to this point. Having a place that it’s accessible, like today, so your everyday person can understand it, helps people see that it’s not so different from other sports—it’s very technical and it’s very athletic. I think to get that message across is important.”
