Lipica Open Day Attracts Thousands of Visitors
An open house day at the Lipica Stud Farm, the home of the famous Lipizzaner white horses, has attracted several thousand visitors. Sunday's event marked the end of the Days of the Lipica Stud Farm, a three-day festival aimed at promoting this jewel of the Karst.
As part of the open day, the crowd was addressed by Culture Minister Vasko Simoniti and acting general manager of the Stud Farm Matjaz Pust, who underscored the need to implement the vision set down by the government and its new management.
The two officials pointed out that the Lipizzaners were the oldest Slovenian brand name, which is why it was Slovenia's responsibility to ensure the development of their home at Lipica.
Pust explained that the development of the Stud Farm would be a three-pronged process involving horse breeding and a riding academy; golf; and cultural tourism. Lipica can become a top European tourist destination and living cultural monument, he said.
Simoniti echoed this week and stressed that the changes to the act on Lipica Stud Farm that were adopted by the government earlier this year "set the foundations for developing Lipica as a tourist centre and a cultural hub".
The separation of the commercial and public services at Lipica will ensure that both the Lipizzaners are protected and that the destination can develop from a business point of view, he added.
The proceedings also saw riding displays by domestic and foreign riders on the renovated hippodrome. Among those in attendance were representatives of Lipizzaner stud farms from Croatia, Hungary and Austria as well as breeders from Slovenia, Croatia, Denmark and Germany.
There was no shortage of respected names from business, politics and the entertainment industry at Lipica.
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