Over 60,000 people are expected to attend the Fidelity Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials, which run from Thursday September 8th – Sunday September 11th 2011.

The 2011 Blenheim Trials will also be hosting an eventing qualifier for the London 2012 Olympics.

Organisers say they are anticipating the biggest crowds since Blenheim hosted the European Eventing Championships in 2005.

As reported by the Witney Gazette, Mandy Hervieu, event director, said: “Blenheim is one of the best three star events in the world and the terrain is quite hilly and demanding — so not unlike Greenwich.

She continued: “This makes us a natural stepping stone for those looking for Olympic selection. Indeed, teams from Australia, South Africa and Japan have yet to qualify for 2012 and will be looking to do so at Blenheim in our Olympic Team Qualifier. We have invested heavily over the last two years in order to put on two days of cross country, so Blenheim is one of the few events where spectators can come and see cross country action on both the Saturday and Sunday, and it is lovely to see that coming to fruition now.

“We expect the venue to be packed to the rafters with fans eager to see Olympic hopefuls perform so close to London 2012.”

For more information, head over to the Blenheim Horse Trials website.

Source: Witney Gazette