Georgia International Horse Park
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The Georgia International Horse Park (referred to by locals as The Horse Park) is located in Conyers, Georgia, United States, 30 miles (50 km) east of Atlanta.
Due to the growth of Rockdale County, Georgia, in the late 1980s, the county was looking to expand its wastewater treatment system, but they were having to find alternative uses to strict environmental regulations on the local, state, and federal levels. The City of Conyers, Georgia, found 1,139 acres (4.61 km2) of land on Georgia State Route 138 north of Interstate 20 that would have been suitable for land application.
Both the City Manager and the County Council were in the process of finding other uses for this land other than land application when Atlanta was awarded the 1996 Summer Olympics on September 18, 1990. This led to a change in plans from a city park to the development of the land that would later become the Georgia International Horse Park. As a result, an equestrian task force was developed to have the park developed, under cooperation with the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG).
The proposed site was visited on August 7, 1991, with details about the land, the proposed facilities, and their post-Olympic usage. The Georgia International Horse Park became reality when it was approved by ACOG on October 21, 1991.
Some of the outdoor scenes for the Netflix series Stranger Things were filmed in the park.[1]
The Centennial Olympic Games
During the 1996 Summer Olympics, which ran from July 19 to August 4, over 600,000 people visited the track to witness events in equestrian, mountain biking, and the riding and running portions of the modern pentathlon events.
Among the event competitors who would gain fame ten years later were Kateřina Neumannová and Michael R. Matz. Neumannová competed in the women's mountain biking competition at the 1996 Summer Olympics would later win the gold medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics in the women's 30 km freestyle mass start cross country skiing event. Matz earned a silver in Team show jumping event, and as a trainer, has two wins in Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing events and a Breeder's Cup win.
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