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the Finals had to be indoors, and because there was different classes and activities. But Quirk decided
no roof over the Del Mar arena, there could be no against that. He believed that the Finals should be
future World Cup event at that facility after 1992. treated like the Olympics and not just be one of
Happily, there was only one thing left for John to do. many events. Ammann agreed, and the concept for
“Well, back to the Las Vegas I thought,” he quipped. the World Cup Finals in the United States was born.
“I figured by this time somebody would have thought Back then, while it was an FEI event, they weren’t really
of it, but nobody had. I went to Las Vegas, talked to active in it. Ammann was the main man with a committee
the major hotels and they all liked the idea, but ev- of influential people. The Federation would have taken
eryone told me to go to a company called Las Vegas over, but since they weren’t that involved everything went
Events. I didn’t know what that was, because it was a through Max, particularly the first two or three years.
new thing. It was created by the government to bring John and Max had the best in the equestrian and
customers into town so off I marched to find them." entertainment world working to marry the sport
“I went across town to Las Vegas Events, introduced of show jumping with a Las Vegas-type show. “It
myself and over a period of a couple of years, AND really was a very simple thing to do,” John told
it wasn’t easy at all, I convinced them that they should me, “but it didn’t happen overnight, it took plan-
hold a World Cup Finals. When they did say ning and planning takes time especially when
t h a t they would go ahead with you have to explain a dream to someone else."
it I called my friend Max Problematically, that was the same year that Volvo
Ammann, the Direc- withdrew their sponsorship, they had been putting up a
tor/orginator/founder substantial amount of money that they needed to even
of the World Cup, to make it happen at all. “Here we were without that spon-
see what he thought sorship and nobody else bidding, so Las Vegas was not
and he went with sure they wanted to do it. At that point, when Volvo
the idea right away.” pulled out, most people in the sport felt that the World
The original Cup was dead," says John with that twinkle in his eye.
thought was to “But,” he continued, “Las Vegas Events bit the bullet
have the World and decided they would sponsor it themselves. In return
Cup Finals like a though, they wanted the rights to produce it in 2003 and
horse show, with 2005.That was also the point that I figured I had nothing
This Page Left to Right: Max
Ammann ; John Quirk & Pedro
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