From the moment that the majestic notes of “God Save the King” rang out as Lottie Fry entered the ring for her dresage Freestyle at the London International Horse Show on Thursday evening, there was a sense of a great occasion.
The British star didn’t disappoint, putting on quite a show at the ExCeL Arena with Glamourdale, the lustrous 13-year-old black KWPN stallion who collected marks of 10 not only for his trademark extended canter, but also received that distinction for music and choreography, with many 9s along the way in the Longines FEI World Cup Qualifier.
Lottie Fry and Glamourdale stretch it out in the extended trot. (Peter Nixon photo)
Lottie and the horse delivered a winning performance worthy of their 2022 world championship title, with just a minor glitch in the one-tempis, as they made up for a few mistakes that had placed them a surprising third in Wednesday’s Grand Prix. There she finished behind not onlyher Olympic teammate, winner Becky Moody with Jagerbomb, who won, but alsoNorway’s Isabel Freese, second in that class with Total Hope OLD.
Becky Moody and Jagerbomb.
As she started her Freestyle to the notes of “Another One Bites the Dust,” Lottie blazed into a powerful passage before her halt, then resumed passage and flawlessly transitioned to an energetic piaffe, earning a 9 and 8.5s for her entrance and halt.
The judges loved her, reflected in the winning score of 86.645 percent, with four of the five officials giving her artistic marks of more than 90 percent.
The crowd felt the same appreciation, enjoying watching the Netherlands-based rider demonstrate such expertise in her home country. Spectators were with her every minute, clapping along to her piaffe pirouette before her final halt.
At the awards ceremony, an overjoyed Lottie told fans, “The feeling I had in here tonight was something I’ve never felt before. He was absolutely incredible.
“He was on fire,” she said of Glamourdale.. I was so thankful to be able to do that in London in front of this crowd.”
Lottie Fry and Glamourdale
She added “I can’t thank you all enough for the support, not just tonight, but also the whole year running up to Paris (Olympics) and also in Paris. We could feel all your support; very, very grateful.”
As Lottie noted, “That makes it a little emotional to come back to England and ride in front of you all. It’s really an honor.”
Trainer Carl Hester consulted with Becky Moody after her Freestyle.
Becky was one of five British riders in the 14-strong field that did not include any U.S. riders.
She had made a huge splash with her homebred Jagerbomb in his 2023 debut at the show, and wound up competing on her nation’s bronze medal Olympic team last summer.
Her win in the Grand Prix this week was a good start, but mistakes in the Freestyle meant she wound up a disappointing fourth. A canter break in her right pirouette sank her standing with a mark of 3 and two 4s.
In the end, she got a decent score of 80.6, but not what she had hoped for. The crowd loved her anyway.
Isabel was second again with her consistent son of Totilas (83.270), who is out of Weihegold OLD, the World Cup champion of Germany’s Isabel Werth.
“This exceeds all my expectations,” said Isabel about her ride.
“I am so proud. It has always been a dream to compete here. I’ve just been eight weeks out of the saddle after a surgery, which made this result even more special. My groom took exceptional care of Total Hope, and perhaps the break was beneficial for both of us. He is in fantastic form.”
The Netherlands’ Dinja van Liere was further back in third on Hartsuijker (80.225), a big promotion from sixth place in the Grand Prix.
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