Cancellation of Del Mar for 2021 came as the Thermal Desert Dressage CDI was being staged with the largest number of Grand Prix combinations in history in California.
Del Mar National Canceled for 2021
4 years ago StraightArrow Comments Off on Del Mar National Canceled for 2021
Nov. 20, 2020
The Del Mar National, three weeks of top equestrian events including one of the most popular international dressage competitions in California, has been canceled for next spring, a victim of the coronavirus pandemic.
The state-owned Del Mar Fairgrounds that is a Heritage show site was to celebrate its 75th anniversary that Regina Antonioli, the dressage event director and show secretary, said would now be scheduled for 2022. The CDI3* was scheduled for the end of April next year.
The Del Mar Times news outlet reported that almost 100 employees were let go with a 90% cut in revenue at the fairgrounds that includes a race track. The dressage and hunter/jumper shows attract up to 4,000 spectators, but measures to counter pandemic restricted spectators.
Further, a multi-million dollar water management project required at the fairgrounds that is in a flood zone added to costs of operating the show grounds.
