November 24 was a historic day for the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) as the Federation celebrates its 90^th birthday and joins in the celebrations for the 1000-day countdown to the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in 2014.

On Nov. 24, 1921, representatives from national equestrian organizations from Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, Japan, Norway, Sweden, and the United States gathered in Paris, France, with the objective of forming an international federation. The inclusion of equestrian sport in the Olympic movement and the rapid development of the sport overall made it clear that internationally recognized rules supervised by a world governing body were essential. The FEI was born and Baron du Teil of France was elected as the first FEI President.

"The FEI was founded in 1921 at a small gathering in troubled post-war Europe; now, 90 years later, the FEI is an international organization with 132 Member Federations and is in charge of almost 3,000 events organized all over the world. More than 50,000 horses and 32,000 riders, drivers and vaulters are today registered with the FEI," current FEI President, HRH Princess Haya, commented.

"We are proud of the history and tradition of our sport, which celebrates the centuries-old relationship between humans and horses. We continue to celebrate equestrian sport, which has proved beyond any doubt that it has the magic and charisma to remain attractive and relevant in the modern sporting landscape. What an incredible journey it has been and what an incredible journey it will continue to be over the next 90 years