World Dressage Masters goes bust
THE company behind the World Dressage Masters series has been declared bankrupt.
The World Dressage Masters Administration BV, a Dutch group behind the global series, was liquidated in April.
The reason given on the official bankruptcy document, released in August, was “insufficient cash and no turnover to be realised”.
Bernadette Brune, organiser of the Vidauban leg of the World Dressage Masters, took out a successful lawsuit against the company after they failed to pay out the full prize money at the 2015 show.
Although she won, she told H&H she “did not receive one cent” from them.
The World Dressage Masters was launched in 2008 by sports marketing agency SportBizz and equestrian innovator Exquis, with its first show held at Palm Beach in Florida in 2009.
It was an outdoor CDI5* series with legs at iconic venues across the world, including Hickstead, Falsterbo, Cannes and Geneva.
The World Dressage Masters was also a founding partner of Global Dressage Analytics (GDA).
Dr David Stickland, a co-founder of GDA, told H&H the World Dressage Masters has been a “great support”.
“However, there are no negative implications for GDA operations nor intellectual property from the World Dressage Masters bankruptcy,” he said.
“I am, of course, sad to see this exciting idea of World Dressage Masters die.”
H&H received no response from World Dressage Masters.