Tropical Storm Delays Olympic Horses

HONG KONG (AP) – Two dozen horses due to arrive in Hong Kong by plane Wednesday for the Olympic equestrian competition have been delayed by a severe tropical storm.

Equestrian event spokesman Mark Pinkstone said he didn’t expect the bad weather to affect the competition, which starts Saturday.

Pinkstone said the 24 horses from the U.S., China, the United Arab Emirates, Australia and Saudi Arabia were on two flights from Amsterdam.

“They’ll come in as soon as the weather clears,” he said.

Severe tropical storm Kammuri brought heavy rainfall and strong winds to the territory, shutting offices, courts and financial markets. The storm’s expected to be well west of Hong Kong by Thursday morning, according to a Hong Kong Observatory forecast.

Pinkstone said Olympic organizers expect rainfall to continue for the next few days, but that it won’t affect the competition.

“Under normal circumstances, if it’s raining, anywhere, the equestrian sport continues,” he says.

• Read Olympic equestrian rider profiles, overviews of events and Hong Kong facilities, and other Olympic equestrian news on RegardingHorses.com. Complete coverage of 2008 Olympic Equestrian events.