SAMSUNG SUPERLEAGUE WITH FEI 2008 - ITS SUPER-FRIDAY IN SWITZERLAND ! ...

ITS SUPER-FRIDAY IN SWITZERLAND!.....

Swiss sports fans are in for a real treat tomorrow as the town of St Gallen plays host to two spectacular sporting events.

First up is the third leg of the 2008 Samsung Super League with FEI series in which the Belgian team has been drawn first to go and then, as if there has not been enough excitement already, the new soccer stadium built just across the highway will stage its very first event with an international football match. National pride is at fever-pitch, and the Swiss show jumping team will want to get the day off to the right start with a good result that will improve their position on the Samsung leaderboard.

At the Super League draw this afternoon the order-of-go was decided as follows:

1. Belgium
2. Switzerland
3. Ireland
4. Germany
5. Sweden
6. The Netherlands
7. Great Britain
8. USA.

The Americans currently lead the standings but Great Britain follows very close behind ahead of Belgium in third, Ireland in fourth, The Netherlands in fifth and Switzerland in sixth. Surprisingly it is Germany that currently lies second-last on the league table ahead of Sweden in eighth place and for Swedish Chef d'Equipe, Maria Gretzer, it promises to be another tense afternoon.

Wonderful summer weather conditions have welcomed the teams and their supporters to the lovely Swiss town and Mr Kurt Hofman, Corporate Marketing Manager of Samsung Electronics Zurich Branch, said he hoped it would continue. After the relentless downpours in Rome just one week ago there were no dissenting voices in that regard.

All but one of the team managers named their sides for tomorrow's clash, Ireland's Robert Splaine declining to confirm his complete selection until he had seen all of his riders compete except to say that both Denis Lynch, who so sensationally won both the Grand Prix events in La Baule and Rome over the past few weeks, and Niall Talbot who recently won the Grand Prix in Copenhagen, would definitely be included.

Belgium's Lucien Somers namds Philippe Lejeune, Patrick McEntee, Judy-Ann Melchior and Jos Lansink - although Judy-Ann took a heavy fall from Aktion Pur-Z in a jump-off class 30 minutes later.

Swiss Chef d'Equipe confirmed his choice of Christina Liebherr, Niklaus Schurtenberger, Steve Guerdat and Pius Schwizer while Germany's Kurt Gravemeier named Ludger Beerbaum, Carsten-Otto Nagel, Christian Ahlmann and Marco Kutscher.

Maria Gretzer's side have had a nightmarish start to their Samsung Super League with FEI season so she is hoping that their luck begins to turn and she sends out Peter Eriksson, Linda Heed, Helena Lundback and Lotta Schultz to do battle.

Rob Ehrens' Dutch team includes Angelique Hoorn, Vincent Voorn, Piet Raijmakers and Gerco Schroder while Great Britain's Derek Ricketts has selected Tim Stockdale, Ben Maher, Peter Charles and John Whitaker.

Predictions for tomorrow mainly focused on the Germans and Americans as winners, but Robert Splaine insisted that it is the British who are looking strongest right now while American manager George Morris said that this is one of the most open Super League seasons since the series began. "Each week the competition is totally different and that is making it really exciting" he pointed out, but he added "Kurt (Gravemeier) is sending out his big guns now so we all better watch out!"

Tomorrow's US team again consists of Ann Kursinksi, Will Simpson, Nicole Shaninian-Simpson and Charlie Jayne - "and we have a lot of really good German horses too" George said, nudging Mr Gravemeier. Mr Morris is particularly delighted with just how competitive Jayne has been since he has come to Europe for the Samsung Super League with FEI tour. "Charlie comes from Chicago and he's a real professional - he's been riding in Grand Prix classes since he was 10 years old and he's a very special rider" he pointed out.

There was a bit of banter between the German and Swiss team managers - Rolf Grass saying just how pleased he was feeling that although the Swiss are lying well-down the league table the Germans are behind them - and there is a great sense of Swiss determination about the showgrounds this afternoon.

That may well have something to do with the fact that the Swiss national soccer team - which includes big names like Alex Frei who plays for Dortmund, Lazio player Valon Behrami, Arsenal's Philippe Senderas and goalkeeper Diego Benaglio from Wolfsburg - will be playing a friendly international with Lichtenstein tomorrow night at the shiny new AFG Arena in the lead-up to the opening round of the European Championship which kicks off in eight days time.

The new stadium is sold out for the big occasion but the tension over there will not be any greater than it will be across the road in the lovely Grundenmoos grass arena during the third leg of the Samsung Super League with FEI.....

SAMSUNG SUPER LEAGUE WITH FEI 2008 - LEADERBOARD AFTER SECOND LEG IN ROME:

1. USA - 12.33
2. Great Britain - 12.0
2. Belgium - 12.0
4. Ireland - 8.83
5. The Netherlands- 6.5
6. Switzerland - 6.08
7. Germany - 6.0
8. Sweden - 1.25

For information on the Samsung Super League with FEI at St Gallen, Switzerland on Friday 30 May check out WEBSITE www.csio.ch. Show President is Peter Stoessel, Show Director is Urs Schiendorfer, Show Secretary is Silvia Gonzalez and Press Officer is Peter Wyrsch - Email peter.wyrsch@sportinformation.ch.

The fourth leg of the series takes place in Rotterdam, The Netherlands on Friday 20 June. Show President is Frans Lavooy, Show Director is Emile Hendrix, Show Secretary is Joyce Lebon and Press Officer is Anita Lussenburg - Email anita.lussenburg@ingram.nl. WEBSITE www.chio.nl

FEI TELEVISION - BROADCAST INFORMATION - ROUND TWO IN ROME :
Live/Delayed Live
SF (Switzerland) - Friday 30 May 14.00
RAI (Italy) - Friday 30 May - check local listings
Equidia (France) - Friday 30 May 18.00
TV4 (Sweden) - Friday 30 May 15.20

Highlights
CNBC Asia - Saturday 14 June 15.00
CNBC Europe - Saturday 14 June 17.00
ESPN Brazil - Check local listings
ESPN Star - Check local listings
Eurosport (Europe) - Wednesday 4 June 21.55, Thursday 5 June 10.00
Eurosport (Asia) - Thursday 12 June 11.00
Finnish Sport TV - Check local listings
Fox Middle East - Friday 13 June 16.00, Sunday 15 June 16.00, Thursday 19 June 10.00
Setanta Sports (Ireland) - Saturday 7 June 20.00
SuperSport (Africa) - Thursday 19 June 19.00, Friday 20 June 06.00, Saturday 21 June 09.00, Sunday 22 June 12.00,
Monday 23 June 15.00, Tuesday 24 June 13.30, Thursday 26 June 02.00
Sport Plus (France) - Monday 9 June 21.00
Sport TV (Portugal) - Check local listings
TG4 (Ireland) - Check local listings
TVE (Spain) - Check local listings
WCSN (USA) - Check local listings

SAMSUNG SUPER LEAGUE - NATIONAL PRIDE, INTERNATIONAL PASSION!

SAMSUNG SUPER LEAGUE WITH FEI - 2008 CALENDAR OF EVENTS:

ROUND 1 - La Baule (FRA) 5-11 May; ROUND 2 - Rome (ITA) 22-25 May; ROUND 3 - St Gallen (SUI) 29 May - 1 June: ROUND 4 - Rotterdam (NED) 18-22 June; ROUND 5 - Aachen (GER) 1-6 July; ROUND 6 - Hickstead (GBR) 24-27 July; ROUND 7 - Dublin (IRL) 8-10 August; ROUND 8 and FINAL - Barcelona (ESP) 18-21 September.

You can access all the latest Samsung Super League with FEI news and information on website www.samsungsuperleague.com

Want to know more? Check out the comprehensive MEDIA GUIDE for the series, available in print (contact: olivia.robinson@fei.org)and for download at www.samsungsuperleague.com under "Media Guide" heading.

PHOTOGRAPHS - A Photo Gallery of pictures is available on the Samsung Super League with FEI website for use by professional media only. The gallery will be regularly updated with low and high-resolution photographs and is password protected. To obtain a password follow the simple instructions when clicking on the link.

The Samsung Super League with FEI consists of the eight most prestigious horse shows at which the world's eight best national teams compare their merit. The Samsung Super League with FEI is connected to the FEI Nations Cup series through a promotion/relegation system at the end of each season.

Samsung Electronics, one of the world's largest electronics companies, is committed to supporting international sporting events, thereby returning corporate profits to the public and working towards a more harmonious and equitable society.