ESNZ is pleased to bring you this update to bring you up to speed with what we have been doing at ESNZ to prepare for a return to competition under Covid-19 restrictions.

In March the ESNZ board cancelled all equestrian competitions for three months – this was before the levels system was introduced. It was stated that this would be reviewed at the board meeting on the 29 April 2020.  Yesterday the board resolved that the return to competition would be guided by the Government’s Covid levels system.

In light of this ESNZ staff will continue to work closely with Sport NZ staff and the Government to determine the best time for a return to competition, contact tracing, the requirements that organising committees must meet in order to hold events, templates and resources for organising committees and any reporting that we will need to complete.  If anyone has any requests or suggestions please do let us know by emailing [email protected]

We completely understand that it has been a challenging and difficult time for many of our members. One of the issues we came across when we tried to determine advice for the levels was that equestrian is many things – it is not the same as walking, running or cycling – it is a recreation, active play, a competitive sport, a business and a lifestyle. This makes it complicated when we have to review all the guidelines from all the Ministries and decipher a way forward.

The Ministry of Primary Industries today released some further information relating to horse physios and other equine related businesses.  We have updated our alert levels to reflect the Govt advice. If in doubt we are following the Govt advice as closely as possible.  We will also continue to update the levels as new information comes to light. 

We thank you for your patience in this regard, and hope that you will continue to maintain the safe standards and cautious approach as we work our way back through the levels. We are trying to do the best for you all.