Prestigious equestrian event coming to Long Beach this fall

A prestigious inteational equestrian event will make Long Beach its American home this fall.

The Longines Masters of Los Angeles, part of the three-stop Grand Slam of Indoor Show Jumping, is moving 20 miles south to the Long Beach Arena and convention center, organizers aounced this week. More than 120 riders and 150 horses will compete for more than $1 million in prize money over four days — Sept. 29 to Oct. 2.

“We’re going to have the best athletes in the world here in the first jumping event after the Rio Olympics,” Matthieu Gheysen, event director, said. “There will be inteational television with an audience of hundreds of millions. It’s a very vibrant atmosphere … and the only sport I know where you can get right next to Olympic medalists and talk to them.”

The Longines Masters started in 2013 with an event in Hong Kong. It expanded to Los Angeles in 2014, and last year added Paris as the third stop in the Grand Slam.

EEM, a promoter based in Brussels, is behind the Longines Masters. EEM has been producing jumping events for the last 10 years, mostly in Europe.

Gheysen said the addition of a Los Angeles event was key to adding the West Coast horse community, but after two year at the LA Convention Center, it became clear the event needed a new home.

“There has been a difference from the very begiing,” Gheysen said. “I’ve been working with Steve (Goodling, president and CEO of the Long Beach Convention & Visitors Bureau) and the Convention Center, and they’ve been opening doors and reaching out from the begiing. The mayor has been very supportive and … we’ve felt very welcome.”

Plans for the event are to have the jumping competition in the Arena, with the horses stabled in the Convention Center. There also will be an exercise arena and Masters Village in the center, where visitors can get close to the horses and riders, along with other experiences.

There will be live entertainment, Gheysen said, and activities. The Masters will reach out to area schools, and provide free and affordable admission, particularly in the first two days of the event.

“We’re going to reach out to the community,” Gheysen said. “We want to create partnerships with Long Beach businesses. We don’t want to be seen as an event that disappears after four days. We want to be part of the community.”

While accessibility is important, the experience of enjoying the finer things in life will be part of the long weekend, too. VIP packages will include luxury boxes with food from three-star Michelin chefs.

“Even if you don’t know the sport (of horse jumping), it will be a great experience on many levels,” Gheysen said. “Just the proximity with the horses and riders will be different, and amazing. There will be something for everyone.”

Goodling said some things had to be moved around to accommodate the Longines Masters, but it worked out well in the end. Mayor Robert Garcia said he was pleased to attract the big event.

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“The Longines Masters of Los Angeles is one of the most prestigious equestrian events in the world, and the city of Long Beach is proud to host the American portion of the tour,” he said in a release. “Long Beach offers a unique blend of urban sophistication and beach city charm. Our downtown waterfront Arena is a perfect setting.”

Tickets are not available yet. For more information, go to www.longinesmasters.com.

Harry Saltzgaver is executive editor of Gazette Newspapers. He can be reached at [email protected].