Where do the European Open belong in the future?

The European Open 2023 in Denmark provided a lot to talk about afterwards. Not as usual from a sporting point of view, but for very different reasons. One of them is only indirectly related to the event in Denmark itself, but rather to Mother Nature. Because the mixed weather with a mix of sunshine and rain caused a wide variety of conditions during the same run. This inevitably led to resentment among the participants. Found food for a discussion that has been going on for years.

Namely the discussion as to whether it is still up to date to organize the European Open Outdoor or not. The discussion about this is repeated practically after every European Open. Be it due to heavy rainfall and subsequent slippery ground. Or on hot days with burning hot sand and muggy air. The best example of this was the European Open 2019 in the Netherlands in Papendal. Better known as the heat battle of the Netherlands. At the time, the event made headlines beyond the Agility community when animal rights activists called for the event to be banned at these temperatures. In the end, most of the runs were scheduled for the early hours of the morning and in the evenings until late at night. At that time, many asked themselves whether the tournament really had to be held in midsummer?

An event in spring would certainly make more sense in terms of temperatures. However, the timing of the event does not change the precipitation factor. There can be a perfectly rainy weekend in spring just as easily as there can be in summer. Not a pleasant thing at significantly lower temperatures. In addition, many participants combine the days before or after the European Open with holidays. On the one hand because during this time most people simply have holidays and want to have holidays. A postponement to spring would certainly be possible in terms of dates. However, this does not change the problem with the weather and the condition of the surface when it is wet. Nations with a joint World Championship and EO qualification would also have to recalibrate their system if there was a change. But that would be the least of the problems.

Probably the only and most realistic solution would be to move the tournament indoors. Last year’s European Open in Belgium was a good example of this. Also proof that it is possible to have such a large field of participants start in one hall. Even if there were voices last year who complained about the sandy soil. At that time mostly due to the bumps caused by the many runners. The fact is, if you want to switch to the hall, then many options are lost. There are some halls that would be sufficient in size. Mostly from equestrian sports, where dogs are not always welcome. The costs are also increasing massively in order to be able to set up an event at all. Renting a hall or, in the case of the European Open, possibly another smaller hall is a different house number than a soccer field. Also not to be forgotten is the whole rat tail that an event entails. Campsites, parking lots, walking spots for the dogs, technical facilities on site, etc. The FCI and the community have to be careful that they don’t trip themselves and end up not being able to find any organizers because of the high requirements.

From a sporting and health point of view, it would of course be desirable to find the best conditions in each case. But nostalgics swear by the special charm that the European Open exudes as the largest outdoor event. Because when the European Open was launched, the summer was deliberately chosen as the date and the change between outdoor sand and grass courts. Since then, the sport has developed rapidly. As already mentioned, one can now talk about sport for dogs and humans with a clear conscience. The speed of dogs as well as dog handlers has also changed many times over. Time to find a sustainable solution. One that suits organizers, FCI and dog sports enthusiasts. The best example is the FCI Agility World Championship. So far, they have always taken place indoor, but also with different surfaces before today’s standard artificial turf.

We are curious to see how the discussion develops. In any case, next year the European Open will take place again as an outdoor event. In England, of all places, which is not exactly known for lush sunshine. At the Junior Open Agility World Championship on the same location, there was already a small taste when the event had to be interrupted for half a day due to strong winds. Rain included.