AACHEN: A UNIQUE EVENT ROLEX GRAND SLAM MAGAZINE CHIO AACHEN, A UNIQUE EVENT THE AACHEN ADVENTURE 46 T he lilac-coloured clouds on the horizon seem to float above the tents. Four masts tower 45 metres in the air equipped with gigantic floodlights, transforming the stadium and the grass below into a play of shadow and light. For the CHIO Aachen, these are simply the huge lamps that make it possible to stage competitions into the late evening. However, they are much more than that, in exactly the same way that the CHIO Aachen is much more than an equestrian show. They spotlight a totally unique, dramatic performance, in which a single brilliant scene can turn athletes into true heroes. The lights are also magnets, so strong that they attract 350,000 people to the grounds of the CHIO Aachen over the course of the show, an intimate and yet vast universe on the outskirts of Aachen. It spans 17 hectares or 24 football fields. Yet its overall dimensions can only truly be perceived from the air. For the visitors, everything their hearts desire is close at hand, and invites them to embark on an unforgettable adventure, as they journey through the world of the CHIO Aachen. It begins in the city of tents. Some 250 white pavilions. Like small, snow-covered mountain peaks, they line the paths that are named after the horses that have written history in Aachen. The Ratina-ZAllee, Hickstead Street, Goldfever Square – each path entices passersby to linger and discover more. Exhibitors from all over the world present their goods – the CHIO Aachen is international, and not only inside the arenas. Music accompanies the visitors on their discovery of culinary treats and foreshadows the live music that will be playing later in the evening. The aroma of coffee and the smell of freshly baked waffles sweeten the miles of shopping, at the end of which beer gardens and champagne bars await with cool refreshments. It is extremely easy to let oneself be carried along, simply drifting with flow of the crowd, discovering and enjoying. In the dressage stadium, one alley away from the city of tents, enjoyment is experiencing new dimensions. An entire orchestra plays in unison with the rhythm of hooves during the Horse & Symphony concert. The harmony between horse and rider reaches its peak in the dressage freestyle, when this veritable dance around the stadium goes hand in hand with breathtaking acrobatics in the vaulting competitions. This is the moment when equestrian sport becomes art, and each performance becomes a poetic masterpiece, created to enchant the onlooker with the beauty of the moment. At the other end of the CHIO Aachen a thriller is taking place. Crowds stream onto the fields behind the main stadium, like a safari across the countryside. However the idyll ends as soon as the competitions get underway. On the cross-country track, only the athletes’ battle against the clock counts. Their fleeting joy at
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