Excitement is rife for KS Champions League final

The final tournament in North Iceland’s KS Champions League in Equestrian Sports will be held at Svaðastaðahöllin arena in Sauðárkrókur on Friday, 7 May, at 18 UTC. Riders will compete in tölt and flying pace. The competition can be watched in live streaming or later by buying access on Tindastóll TV.

The winners in T2.

“We will have some secret guests, at least in the flying pace,” reveals Andrea Þorvaldsdóttir, chair of the league’s board. “We have had superstars participate. Last year Steggur and Siguroddur came and won the tölt and Sigursteinn entered the flying pace on Krókus frá Dalbæ.”

Siguroddur Pétursson won the tölt in 2020 on Steggur frá Hrísdal. But Konráð Valur Sveinsson won the flying pace on Kjarkur frá Árbæjarhjáleiga II and set a new arena record with 4.62 seconds, as stated on the league’s Facebook page.

The KS Champions League is like the North Icelandic version of Lífland’s Icelandic Horse Champions League and it’s set up in a similar way. The KS League has eight teams and five riders on each team. Five tournaments are held during the winter season (usually there are four in Sauðárkrókur and one in Akureyri but this year they were all in Sauðárkrókur) and the teams compete in six disciplines. However, there is no outdoor pace as in Lífland’s Champions League.

From the T2 competition.

“It is very similar as in South Iceland but in our league the team with the lowest scores drops out and then there are playoffs and the winners can compete in the league in the following season, so there’s more renewal,” explains Andrea.

“We were the first to try the new gæðinga-dressage and it went really well. The league is very ambitious; we have great horses and the best riders from the region,” she adds. Some riders actually come from other regions, from Reyðarfjörður in East Iceland and Borgarfjörður in West Iceland.

“A large of the riders come from Hólar University, either teachers or students. Many of them are young riders taking their first steps in competitive equestrianism so this is fantastic promotion from them,” says Andrea.

At the end of the tournament on Friday, the winner of the 2021 KS Champions League will be honoured along with the top-scoring team.

Text: Eygló Svala Arnarsdóttir. Photos: Bjarney Anna Þórsdóttir.