THIS July, Dr Ilona Hudson will be the only equestrian athlete to represent Australia in dressage at the Maccabiah Games in Israel.

The Maccabiah Games, often referred to as the Jewish Olympics, draws together 9,000 athletes from 78 countries.

The first games was held in 1932, and take place quadrennially in Israel.

This year is of particular significance to Australian athletes, as it will be the 20th anniversary of the games where the bridge leading athletes on their march into the opening ceremony collapsed, killing four Australian athletes and injuring sixty others.

This will be an emotional games for Dr Hudson, and her fellow team mates, as there will be a ceremony to acknowledge the anniversary, and the athletes who lost their lives.

Dr Hudson is competing in the games following her participation in the dressage competition at the European Maccabi Games in Berlin, 2015.

News Of The Area last year reported on her experiences competing in that event.

There will be sixty equestrian athletes at these games.

The competition structure is such that the athletes are loaned a horse, as many of the participating athletes are unable to travel with their own horses due to animal quarantine laws.

Dr Hudson told News Of The Area, “The name of the horse you get to ride is drawn from a barrel the day before the competition and each athlete is given 30 minutes to ride the horse.”

“This is an amazing opportunity for me, and I have been fortunate to get some assistance from within the veterinary profession to make this experience a reality.”

Dr Hudson is seeking assistance, which is tax deductible, via the Australian Sports Foundation.

To gather more information on sponsorship, contact Dr Hudson on 4982 9899.

News Of The Area will follow her progress at the games, and wishes her the best of luck.

 

By Rachael VAUGHAN