The first group of Olympic horses departed from London Stansted Airport, in the United Kingdom, July 29 on a special cargo plane bound for Rio 2016, marking the start of the Olympic dream for the world’s best equine athletes.

With 34 horses from 10 nations on board, the equine cargo worth multiple millions, was loaded into customized pallets for the almost 12-hour flight aboard an Emirates SkyCargo Boeing 777-F which was organized by Peden Bloodstock left the U.K. at 3:20 BST.

Eventing horses from Great Britain, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, Brazil, Japan, Italy, and China are on board Friday’s flight out of Stansted, the first of nine shipments delivering more than 200 horses to Rio International Airport, en route to the Olympic Equestrian Center in Deodoro Olympic Park.

This complex operation involves three hubs in Europe and America: Stansted; Liege, Belgium; and Miami. The competing horses and their riders will represent 43 nations from around the globe in the Olympic disciplines of dressage, jumping, and eventing