by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 19, 2022
The answer to the question above is not just “airplanes.”
It was time for a re-think after the team failed to finish in the top five at the FEI World Show Jumping Championships last week, which would have been an automatic ticket to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The American show jumpers didn’t even make it to the line-up of 10 teams that battled it out for the medals in Herning, Denmark, but coach Robert Ridland has a plan that should land his squad in Paris at the right time. As he pointed out, there are other opportunities upcoming to make the cut for the Olympics.
Coach Robert Ridland began his winning streak with the U.S. show jumping team eight years ago. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
First is the Nations Cup Final in Barcelona, Spain, in the autumn of 2023. The U.S. didn’t qualify for the final in Barcelona this year due to a variety of circumstances including the EHV-1 outbreak in California, but will go all out for next year. The highest-placed nation that is not already qualified for the Olympics can manage it through this route. But that’s only one available spot.
Then there are the Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, Oct. 31-Nov. 3, 2023.
They are the final qualifier for the Olympics. Three of the highest-placing teams not previously qualified would become eligible for the Olympics. However, this time all the teams (unless one from the Western Hemisphere gets lucky in Barcelona) will be vying for an Olympic spot, since only Europeans were in the top five group at the championships in Denmark. That means the qualifiers for Paris will be the Pan Am medalists.
In the years when the U.S. qualified for the Olympics at the World Championships, the Pan Ams presented an opportunity for less-experienced riders to gain championship mileage.
But it’s a different story for 2023. Robert sees the Pan Ams not only as a must-do for a top team, but also “a dress rehearsal for the Olympics.”
Because Chile is in the Southern Hemisphere, the Pan Ams will be held later than its customary schedule. It’s our autumn but South America’s spring. Pan Ams usually are held in the Northern Hemisphere’s mid-summer.
“I want to take advantage of the fact it’s quite close to the Olympic Games, which is important,” Robert said of the Pan Ams.
“That was the plan we’ve been hatching for some time now. It makes a lot of sense in the lead up to Paris.”
So the U.S. squad will include A-team riders, as well as “one or two of the younger horses we want to see in a championship before you hit them with a big time world championship or the Olympic Games. It’s a perfect opportunity for that,” commented Robert.
Robert Ridland is planning on how the U.S. flag can be raised high for show jumpers on the podium at future championships. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
“Hopefully, it will work out and a similar type team will be in Paris eight months later.”
Putting things in perspective, Robert suggested, “You have to look back on the last two Olympic cycles and what we did. And a lot of things we were consistent with. The first Olympic cycle, Normandy (the 2014 world championships), Toronto (the 2015 Pan Ams) and Rio (the 2016 Olympics), we had a podium finish all three, which is rare in one Olympic cycle. We repeated the same thing in two cycles,” the next being Tryon, Lima and Tokyo.
“That’s unprecedented. No team I’m aware of in the last 50-60 years has ever done that. That’s a pretty good winning streak.”
At the same time, he pointed out, “As with all winning streaks in sport, the Lakers, the Yankees–at some point, they come to an end, and what do you do? Start a new one.”
This time, “the pendulum swung with the injuries, that affects the depth,” he said. The injuries ruled out two Olympic team silver medal mounts, Laura Kraut’s ride Baloutinue and Jessie Springsteen’s, Don Juan van de Donkhoeve, who weren’t available for the world championships, as as well as Jessie’s world championships reserve horse, RMF Zecilie.
“The bottom line is, we didn’t have the horsepower” said Will Connell, the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s director of sport, quickly adding that at the same time, “there isn’t a need to panic. This needs to be looked at as a catalyst for launching forward, for stepping up again, not getting depressed and looking back.”
After the experience in Herning, Robert said, “You wake up the next morning and plan for the next winning streak. I have been planning our lead-up to Paris and hope we’ll end up with a successful result there.”
On the bright side, the dressage team qualified for Paris by finishing sixth in its championships in Denmark, while the para dressage squad qualified for the Paralympics with a team bronze medal.The eventing squad will go for its qualification next month at the FEI World Championships in Pratoni, Italy.
“Herning shouldn’t be all about the jumping team,” Will pointed out, citing the successes.
He mentioned that competing in Europe is a big deal convenience-wise for riders from the U.S., while the Europeans often can just load their horses on a van and drive to their next stop, then head home. Think about the proximity of France, Germany and Switzerland, for instance.
“Our people compete and train and take themselves away from home,” he said.
That makes for “a hard three years,” during the Olympic cycle, as Will put it. He added that there were “no (U.S.) athlete horse/combinations that didn’t want to go to Herning but should have gone to Herning. We had the best available. The pride in team among the top U.S. athletes is as strong as any other nation in the West.”
The reality was that Lillie Keenan and Brian Moggre (at 21 the youngest in the competition but who finished ahead of the other riders on the team) were on their first championship squad, while Adrienne Sternlicht, a member of the 2018 gold medal world championships squa, hadn’t competed at this level for several years with Cristalline. All three are in their 20s. Robert usually puts just one younger rider on his teams, but no veterans were available this time around except McLain, who had only one fault-free trip in the team competition.
Robert noted the teams “more in contention in Herning than others were the ones with two superstar riders, who had serious championship success. We had a team with one of those riders,” he said, referring to McLain.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 19, 2022
It was an intensely exciting equestrian encounter that made history today: Ireland winning the Aga Khan trophy in a jump-off for its home Nations Cup at the Dublin Horse Show.
The crowd in the packed stands around the emerald grass arena at the Royal Dublin Society grounds was treated to an epic equestrian battle. Cian O’Connor, last to go for the Irish in the second round, put in a perfect trip aboard Kilkenny that tied the Irish with the French, each on 4 penalties. (The Irish had zero penalties in the first round, the French 4; in the second round, the scores were switched, leaving each nation on 4 total when taking into account the drop scores).
That necessitated a one-on-one tie-breaker, with France’s Marc Dilasser on Arioto de Gevres starting out first, putting in a clear round in 31.81 seconds.
Conor Swail was picked to represent Ireland in the jump-off. As he had been the first to go in the previous two rounds with Count Me In, it was judged that his horse was not only the most rested, but also fast enough to be equal to the task of breaking the tie. He lived up to chef d’equipe Michael Blake’s faith in him, taking the title with his perfect trip in 30.31 seconds as the crowd roared its approval.
This was the fourth time that Ireland had won the most prestigious trophy in the Nations Cup series, but the first time since 2015.
Conor Swail with the Aga Khan trophy.
Coming on the heels of Ireland qualifying last week for the 2024 Paris Olympics by finishing fourth in the Ecco FEI World Championships, it put an ecstatic Michael over the top.
“It was a lot of drama for me,” said the chef d’equipe, radiating joy.
“It was a good fight from Cian to keep us in the Games,” he continued, then added, “Wasn’t Conor just amazing?”
Comparing Count Me In to “just a big pony,” he cited all the winning that horse has done this year, and then praised his team.
“I can’t be thankful enough to be able to work with these guys. They were so good, so professional. When we had to fight back, we fought back. You have no idea how much this means to me, to get the Olympic Games qualification and the Aga Khan in seven days. That’s just the stuff of dreams.”
There’s one reason he’s dedicating himself to the team.
“I’m doing it because I love the sport. I breathe it. There’s no other feeling like it. Team jumping is just the most amazing thing. The excitement that was here today–where would you see that anywhere else? We’re jumping all day, and with a competition at the end between two horses.”
Chef D’Equipe Michel Blake hoists the Aga Khan trophy with his team, Cian O’Connor, Shane Sweetnam, Conor Swail and Max Wachman. (Photo courtesy FEI)
Dublin, which has been absent for two years in the wake of Covid, is the most amazing show. Those who haven’t been should go if they’re interested in the essence of international show jumping in a very special venue. The enthusiasm of fans is magnificent, and they were more avid than ever celebrating the show’s return.
“The crowd to get behind you, it does lift you,” said Michael.
Conor Swail greets the crowd after clinching the Irish Aga Khan victory.
“To see the crowd that were here today and how they appreciated that. They probably enjoyed having to go to a third round, but it wasn’t enjoyable for me,” he said, and with the tension the jump-off generated, that was understandable.
The U.S. finished sixth of seven teams, with only Laura Kraut (Confu) going double-clear over the brawny course.
Lillie Keenan (Queensland E) and Katherine Dinan (Brego R’N B) were fault-free in the second round after knockdowns in the first. Spencer Smith had nine penalties in the second round and 12 in the first with Untouchable 32 after he lost a stirrup.
Putting in three clears in the second round was “a tremendous comeback effort for our team,” said Coach Robert Ridland.
“We went over what didn’t work one-on-one and each combination had a different area to fix, but they were fixes that were easy for them to address. Each of them executed what we discussed in their second rounds.
“Laura just needed to do the same thing in the second round and it went to plan. The grit and the determination, and the ability to turn the switch, fix the problem, and not get down with the result or where we were, but to come back and fight was just amazing. It was a tremendous second- round effort on everyone’s part and it was great to see from this team.”
Click here for results
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 19, 2022
Alice Tarjan, the alternate for the U.S. 2022 FEI World Championships dressage team, has been named to the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s list for its pre-elite program.
The Oldwick, N.J., resident was selected with Serenade MF and Donatella M. Serenade went to Germany to train with the championships team of Adrienne Lyle, Steffen Peters and Katie Duerrhammer.
Alice Tarjan and Donatella M. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Those three riders were named to the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s elite program, The trio rode to sixth place in the world championships. Adrienne and Steffen were named to the elite list with their championships mounts, Salvino and Suppenkasper. Katie, who rode Quartett in the championships, is on the list with Paxton. The placing in Denmark earned the U.S. a berth in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The pre-elite program lists 10 riders in addition to Alice. Others include Katie with Quartett, Anna Buffini (Davinia La Douce), Sarah Tubman (First Apple) and Nick Wagman (Don John). Also on the list is Ashley Holzer with Valentine, who was on the world championships team but had the drop score.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 17, 2022
Jack Pemberton, a true gentleman who had a huge influence on the sport of driving, has died at age 99.
He was a leader who always delighted in sharing his knowledge. Jack competed against and became friends with royalty, but anyone involved in the sport, whether they were beginners or elite drivers, enjoyed his friendship and help. More than 20 equine-related organizations benefited from his involvement over the years.
The inaugural recipient of the Equine Canada Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007, he was a past president of the Carriage Association of America and a past director of the Canadian Horse Shows Association.
“When I first got involved with the Canadian Horse Shows Association, there were only two employees. Now you can see how equestrian sport in Canada has grown,” he once recollected, “I am fortunate enough to have stayed on the right side of the grass to see it grow to its present state.”
He started working with the Canadian Equestrian Federation in 1975 and had been an honorary life director since 1981. He also was involved with the FEI as a driving judge and chairman of the FEI Driving Committee from 1995 through 2003.
Other organizations that would not have been the same without him are the Ontario Equine Research Center in Guelph and the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair. He was involved with establishing the Ontario Equine Research Center in 1981, and later served as a chairman of the Center’s Advisory Committee for six years.
His involvement with the Royal began in 1964, when he started competing in the coaching class. He became a director in 1974, and served as the Royal’s president in 1975, as well as from1978 through 1979.
Jack Pemberton with Sandra Banks at the Royal. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
He chaired the Canadian Pleasure Driving Championships and was a life member of the British Horse Society, the Canadian Combined Driving Association, Drive Canada, the Canadian Hackney Society and the Eastern Ontario Pleasure Driving Society, as well as many other organizations. Outside of the horse world, he had served as a reconnaissance pilot in the British air force.
Dozens of tributes to him poured in on social media.
Christine Reupke, the Royal’s director of equestrian and breed sport, paid tribute by saying, “It’s a sad moment for us at the Royal. A great man, a mentor and complete hero… Jack you’ll be missed.”
Carriage Association of America Past President Natasha Grigg called him “a towering, influential and incredibly sympathetic presence in the formative days of combined driving and subsequently during its heyday in the United States. I feel honored to have been a friend and enjoyed his guidance and humor in all the years that I was active in the ADS and afterwards.”
Pairs driver Tracey Morgan called him “such a wonderful man and horseman. I will always remember his wonderful stories of the early days of driving in North America and be grateful for his work to establish the first World Championship for ponies.”
Sherri Whitworth-Denoouden commented that everyone “will miss his knowledge, skills, dedication and involvement in the sport. A class act through and through.”
He did not want a funeral, so a celebration of his life will be planned for next spring.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 15, 2022
A new era is dawning for equestrian helmets.
Virginia Tech’s Helmet Lab is close to announcing a star system that would rate riding helmet safety. The lab’s work began with football helmets but has now expanded to youth football, flag football, hockey, cycling, soccer, and snow sport.
Equestrian will be the newest addition, as the research is in its final phase. The test methods began with video analysis of 100 equestrian falls, followed by laboratory system comparison, on-site field testing and impactor surface comparison on both dirt and sand surfaces—the “extremes” of hard and soft footing. The last phase is in process and involves the final calculations of STAR values (Summation of Tests for the Analysis of Risk) and the publication of star ratings.
“We’ll often throw a football helmet in there. A football helmet is the most advanced and optimized helmet. We’ll also evaluate a ‘bare’ or no helmet situation to show what the helmet is doing (helping with),” Dr. Stefan Duma of the lab explained.
“If an equestrian helmet is producing similar numbers to a [highly rated] football helmet, it probably doesn’t need improvement.”
At an Equestrian Symposium held last week in Blacksburg, Va., those involved with the lab educated a group of equestrian stakeholders on the progress of their equestrian helmet research. The Helmet Lab began its study nearly four years ago, but the project was brought to fruition with support from the U.S. Equestrian Federation, the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association, the U.S. Eventing Association and Jacqueline Mars, a great supporter of eventing. The group raised more than $425,000 in research funds in December 2020.
“With the same impact, there can be very different biomechanical responses between helmets. We felt a responsibility that everyone should have this information,” said Dr. Steve Rowson, Helmet Lab director.
“Not all helmets are the same just because they meet a [pass/fail] standard. That’s true for skull damage, but not concussions.”
In 2003, Virginia Tech placed the first sensors inside football helmets to measure head acceleration data that could characterize concussions. Nearly two decades later, the Helmet Lab is on the cusp of adding equestrian sport to its arsenal of public safety information on helmet use and unveiling its STAR ratings system for helmets.
The STAR ratings for equestrian helmets are designed to complement existing helmet certifications and fill in the gaps relating to concussion risks. The information, set to be released by the end of the year, will allow the public to search helmets by certification type, helmet type, brand, and more to make more informed choices on the helmets they wear and purchase, as well as educate manufacturers on how to improve the safety of their helmets.
“The equestrian space has one of the noisier standard spaces, which makes it complicated for a manufacturer,” Dr. Duma said.
The Helmet Lab evaluated 26 helmet models and 104 helmets in 312 tests, quantifying elements like actual drop height (where a rider is positioned when parting ways with a horse), what body parts are impacted when falling, liner and rotational impacts, and surface, among other factors.
The STAR value is the theoretical number of concussions someone would sustain if their on-field exposure matched the laboratory impacts and is calculated by multiplying exposure (as a function of impact location and velocity) and concussion risk (as a function of linear and rotational headform acceleration). The ratings correlate with real world injury rates; the lower the STAR value, the better the star rating (one to five stars, with five stars being the highest-rated helmets).
“It’s similar to a new car assessment program. We took a system that works and translated it to the sports world,” Dr. Rowson said.
“Football is a multiple head impact sport,” he added. “In equestrian, exposures are very different, and we have much lower numbers.”
Trainer Joe Dotoli, who has been a key volunteer for promoting safety, said after the tour, “Two plus years of work on the Equestrian 5-star ratings are almost complete. The next giant step forward in safety. Thank you to USHJA, USEF, USEA, NEEC and the Mars Foundation for your support. A great example of working together to make our sport safer. And of course a a huge thank you to the brilliant scientists at VT.”
To learn more about the Virginia Tech Helmet Lab, click here.To learn more about the USEF Helmet Safety Fund, click here.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 15, 2022
The Tewksbury Trail Pace, a longtime fixture at Christie Hoffman Farm Park in the Tewksbury Township, will be blazing new trails next month at the Sullivan-Whitman Preserve, 27 Fox Hill Road, Califon.
The Tewksbury Trail Association is partnering with the Tewksbury Land Trust for the September 18 event, which will include both a trail pace and a pleasure pace with divisions for adults and juniors.
The Tewksbury Trail Pace is always fun. (Photo © 2021 by Nancy Jaffer)
The course will be approximately six miles, complete with rocky areas, challenging hills and road crossings. The land is part of the Ten Mile Trail initiative being developed by the Land Trust. It also includes the Lance Preserve and the Raritan Watershed’s Fox Hill Preserve. Participants also will be riding across private farms.
The pace will be held from 8 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Sept. 18. Participants must bring their own water for themselves and their horses.
Visit tta-nj.org for questions, or email Tewksburytrial@gmail.org.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 15, 2022
From the biggest names in U.S. eventing, to competitors whose names you wouldn’t likely recognize, Richard Mark Picken, is being mourned and many show jumping rounds are being ridden in his memory.
The trainer bowed out at the age of 53 on August 13, after a courageous battle with cancer, dying peacefully at home at Four Schools Farm in Paris, Ky.
“The equestrian community lost an incredible horseman,” said Olympic medalist Phillip Dutton. Speaking for himself and his wife, Evie, he commented that they had “lost the best friend you can dream of having and an incredible coach.”
Boyd Martin, Phillip’s Olympic teammate, said of Richard, “There would not be too many people in the sport of Eventing that have touched so many riders here in the U.S.
“Richard was one of a kind with his training and coaching, often driving through the night to help riders at their farms and at the shows. He was so brilliant in his teaching and his support to so many of us. ”
Emily Hamel called Richard “a significant reason for our success to date,” while Allison Springer commented, “the world lost one of the greatest” in his passing.
Born in the United Kingdom, he emigrated to Kentucky in 2013 and became an instant fixture on the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s eventing and show jumping circuits. He traveled to competitions throughout the U.S. and overseas with his students. Richard enjoyed coaching young riders and training inexperienced horses as much as he thrived under the pressure of an international championship.
Richard Picken. (Photo by JJ Silliman)
With his wife Joanie (Morris), he built a successful training business at their farm. He traveled around the country teaching clinics, and the impact of the knowledge he shared will remain very profound.
The highlights of his coaching career included Phillip Dutton’s bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games and Alexandra Baugh’s Individual gold medal at the North American Young Riders Championships.
But he loved the day-to-day of training of horses as much as the big stage. Richard befriended so many people along the way. His kindness, profound understanding of horses and sense of humor resonated with everyone he met around the world.
Along with his wife, Joanie, he is survived by his father, David Picken (late mother Suzanne), sister Alexandra Tempest (Andy), aunt Joyce Mitchell (Ed), in-laws Beth, Steve and Amy Morris and his beloved dogs.
A celebration of his life will be held in Kentucky for friends and family in the autumn.
In lieu of flowers, consider making a donation to the U.S. Eventing Association Foundation (donate through this link), as a grant is being established in his name to educate the next generation of American equestrian athletes, or the Rick Herrema Foundation, P.O. Box 87146,Fayetteville, NC 28304 (donate on line here), which supports military families.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 14, 2022
The U.S. is going home with some medals from the Ecco FEI World Championships after all.
Although the dressage and show jumping teams didn’t medal in Herning, Denmark, the Adequan Para Dressage Team took bronze, along with an individual silver and bronze in the Orifarm Health FEI Para Dressage World Championship. The team medal qualified the U.S. for the Paralympics in conjunction with the Paris Olympics in 2024.
The team had a total of 225.335 percent, behind silver medal Denmark (229.751) and the gold medal Netherlands (230.225).
“What we have done really affirms our position on the world stage,” said coach Michel Assouline.
“We got the bronze in Tokyo and to get this bronze again here means that it wasn’t a fluke, and the level of performance is great. I’m absolutely ecstatic with what they’ve done as a team here, and very proud of this team, and these girls.”
As competition wrapped up with the freestyles, the silver belonged to Kate Shoemaker and Quiana, who began the morning today with a personal best in the FEI Para Dressage Grade IV, receiving an 80.275 percent from the judging panel. Kate, who works as a veterinarian, had only acquired the Rhinelander mare late in 2021 and is already thrilled with the momentum they have built as a combination.
Kate Shoemaker and Quiana. (Photo courtesy U.S. Equestrian)
“We had so many goals coming into this, and a lot of the goals are out of your control because it involves what other people do, but we really wanted this 80 and I’m just so ecstatic we got it,” said Kate, who led the way to team bronze earlier in the week with 75.415 percent.
“I have to give all of the credit to my horse and my team. Without them, I wouldn’t have the opportunity to sit up there and get to experience that. They all work so hard on my behalf, and we did it together.”
Roxanne Trunnell piloted Fortunato H20 to an excellent score in their first international championship together, earning 76.447 percent. The score is a personal best for the duo and as the youngest horse in the entire field, the 2016 Oldenburg stallion owned by Lehua Custer made an impressive debut with Roxie in Grade I competition. The stallion was bred by Kendra Hansis of Frenchtown, N.J.
“This is the first time he’s doing this at a show, so it’s all been new to him,” said Roxie. She noted coach Michel thought that her music, a mix of movie themes from Jurassic Park and Titanic, would suit Tuna well.
“He was a little more tense today, but we worked through it and I’m really proud,” she commented.
In Grade II, Beatrice de Lavalette and Sixth Sense overcame a few bobbles in their test to receive a 72.107 percent, good enough for fifth in the competitive division. The pair, who also are a first-time world championship combination, consistently improved throughout the week and will take what they’ve learned this week and apply it to their training and program looking ahead to an exciting two years before team selection begins for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
“He was a little frisky today and we had a few bobbles where he trotted when we weren’t supposed to, but overall, I’m still really happy with the ride,” said Bea.
“Obviously, I really am going to be focusing on Paris,” she explained, as she discussed her takeaways from this championship.
“It’s my hometown and one I don’t want to miss,” she said of the French capital.
“We’re going to take everything we learned from this week, our bobbles, some of our areas that could have been marked higher and focus on improving those parts of our partnership.”
As the last ride of the day, Rebecca Hart and El Corona Texel warmed up well before the atmosphere of the arena unsettled the 2009 KWPN gelding owned by Rowan O’Riley. Becca kept her composure and reassured Tex through some spooking to finish their test and nailed their finale salute. The pair received a 72.080 percent from the judges, but Becca is sure that the pair can nail their freestyle in the future.
“That was very disappointing, I’m going to be honest. He warmed up so well and felt so good and we got in there and things were waving and moving, and it just overwhelmed him, but it happens and that’s horses,” explained Becca. “I was happy that I was able to keep him relatively relaxed through that.
“Historically, through that I would have tightened up and shortened his neck, but I said to myself that we’re working on this new relaxation approach and I wanted him to have a good experience in there still. We can do better and I’m looking forward to getting to ride a freestyle with him again, though we may change our music after this,” she laughed.
Becca had plenty to smile about, though, because she took bronze in the Individual Grade III Championship presented by Elsass Fonden on Thursday.
The duo received a 73.147 percent for third, while Tobias Thorning Joergensen of Denmark on Jolene Hill took gold with a 78.676 percent and Natasha Baker (GBR) and Keystone Dawn Chorus earned silver on 73.970 percent.
Becca and Tex received strong marks in the trot work and bringing a relaxed and light presence to the BB Horse Arena. The pair is the most veteran combination on the team for this championships, and Becca was pleased with their overall performance on their first day of competition.
“I’m feeling really good about that test. Tex can be a little bit spicy sometimes and we’ve been working a lot on his relaxation and getting what we have in the warm-up and bringing that…into the competition arena,” said Becca.
“I really enjoyed the mediums and the comeback today. He stayed there and I took a breath in and he was right there and all of it I could really just enjoy and not micromanage things and it was a really nice feeling. He was so much happier out there and it’s nice to have a happy athlete and happy horse.”
The duo has been working at home on desensitization and finding a new training routine that best suits the needs of Tex, utilizing a relaxed balance with energy to bring to the arena from their warm-up and home training.
“We’ve been tweaking a few things at home and this is the first big championship environment we’ve been able to try it in and it’s worked really well. For me, we’ve found that doing a walk tour instead of a trot tour before we go into the ring actually works better for him.
“He can see everything, take a breath and focus. Earlier in our career, I never thought I would be able to do that because we would lose energy, but he’s with me even more now because he’s comfortable in his own space.”
Touting her incredible support team and reflecting on the past four years since her first individual medal in Tryon, Hart noted that her growth as an athlete and person and Tex’s growth as a horse has been immense and they continue to learn from each other.
“I am wildly excited to see our program growing like this. I am here with three amazing riders on new young, incredibly talented horses, and to have depth in our program where we’ve got riders with multiple horses and sponsors who are so strongly behind us, it’s just fantastic to see where we are now compared to twenty years ago and to consistently be in that medal hunt is the goal,” said Becca.
Herning marked the anniversary of a U.S. breakthrough, when it took its first world championships medals in Tryon four years ago.
The U.S. para bronze medal team: Roxie Trunnell, Kate Shoemaker, Becca Hart and Beatrice de Lavallette, with Michel Assouline behind them. (Photo courtesy U.S. Equestrian)
The British, who had long dominated para dressage, could not pass the Dutch in Denmark and would have settled for silver, as they had at the last world championships in Tryon, N.C., in 2018. That was the first time Britain hadn’t taken gold since 1996, but this is the first time they’ve been off the podium in nearly 30 years.
Several nations have improved so much in the sport that it is much more competitive than in the days when the Brits were a sure bet. Even finishing behind the Netherlands, Denmark and the USA, the team placing still qualified them for Paris.
They bounced back big time today, collecting four medals in the freestyle.
Click here for team results
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 14, 2022
Five tough rounds of show jumping over the last week were no match for Henrik von Eckermann and his barefoot King Edward, as the world’s number one ranked rider and team gold medalist for Sweden took the individual title at the Agria World Championships in Herning, Denmark, today.
King Edward was the only horse not to incur a single penalty in a competition that drew 102 starters. Despite his previous exertions, the 12-year-old Belgian warmblood gelding (Edward X Feo) looked fresh and fit for this afternoon’s two-round competition, which presented the usual amazing challenges by imaginative Dutch course designer Louis Konickx, who was the technical delegate at the Tokyo Olympics.
Henrik von Eckermann and King Edward. (Photo courtesy Herning 2022)
Henrik moved up individually from fifth after Wednesday’s speed round to fourth following the first team test on Thursday. After that, he was ranked number one and no competitor was able to displace him. As soon as he finished his final perfect round, Henrik saluted the crowd whipped off his helmet and hugged his horse.
The man who was just out of the individual medals in fourth place at the Tokyo Olympics last year smiled broadly as he waited to step onto the podium following the final 12-horse Agria competition at Stutteri Arena,. There were nearly 12,000 fans watching the finale of the world championships. Though not everyone in the audience was Swedish, of course, it certainly sounded as if they were, judging by the sound level and the abundance of blue and yellow in the stands.
“My horse jumps so many clear rounds, and he has done so many good things for me, it is a privilege and unbelievable,” said Henrik, cataloguing his feelings after the medal ceremony.
“At the moment, I am just a bit empty, I have tried to keep all those emotions down and tried to just get things done. And now we have pulled the plug and it is just pure happiness,” he said.
“Thank you, King Edward. I owe you for life.”
Although Henrik looks as if he has nerves of steel when he is riding even the most complicated course, he feels the tension beforehand.
“It is always the same with me,” revealed Henrik, who also won a team gold medal in Tokyo.
“Around two hours before my ride, I am so nervous, you know, like difficult to eat and stuff like that. But when I get up on my horse, it somehow changes to focus, and I am just trying to really do the best round for my horse.”
Henrik worked 12 years for German show jumping legend Ludger Beerbaum before starting is own stable in 2020.
Henrik von Eckermann thanks King Edward for making him the champion.
Silver medalist Jerome Guery of Belgium, whose horse, Quel Homme de Hus, came closest to King Edward’s achievement, was as effusive as Henrik.
“It feels amazing,” he said.
“My horse deserves it. It is nice to bring a medal home. It means a lot to get an individual medal, but my team deserved to get one too.”
At the same time, he acknowledged, “The Swedish are amazing, and we knew it before we came here.”
Jerome Guery of Belgium riding Quel Homme de Hus winning the silver medal. (Photo © FEI/Leanjo de Koster)
The Belgians were seventh in the team competition, behind the silver medal Dutch and the bronze medal British, as well as Ireland, Germany and France. They just missed by one place qualifying for the 2024 Paris Olympics, since the top five teams from the championships are qualified, excluding the host team, which is France.
Quel Homme de Hus, a 16-year-old Holsteiner stallion (Quidam de Revel X Candillo) accumulated only a single penalty throughout the competition, a time fault.
Dutch rider Maikel van der Vleutin, 34, is known as a can-do guy. The individual bronze medalist in Tokyo, he rode the same horse there as in Herning. That’s Beauville Z N.O.P., a 12-year-old Zangersheide gelding (Bustique X Jumpy des Fontaine), who earned him another bronze today.
The medalists: Jerome Guery, Henrik von Eckermann, Maikel van der Vleutin.
Recounting his time at the championships, Maikel said, “Friday (in the second team round), I made a little rider mistake. My horse deserves the medal, and I had two amazing rounds. It gives pressure on the last riders with my two clear rounds– and the luck was on my side today.”
Funny story. Someone asked Maikel’s teammate Harrie Smolders how he could be calmly eating his lunch during Maikel’s ride in the team competition. Why wasn’t he nervous? Harrie explained his calm demeanor this way, “It’s Maikel.” That’s a man in whom his team has confidence.
Maikel had the biggest jump up the standings in the top three; he was ninth after Friday’s test. Ben Maher of Great Britain, aboard Faltic HB, was fourth, less than a rail back of Maikel.
Views varied on the designer’s courses. Germany’s well-traveled Marcus Ehning, for instance, called the first round today “Not an easy course.” Harrie, however, saw it as “very gentle.”
But time definitely was not as much of an issue in the first round as on the previous days. The 87-second time allowed for 16 jumping efforts meant only five riders had time penalties, with 13 of the 21 starters free of jumping penalties. The course had some flow, with striding options.
The challenges included a rollback to a narrow vertical, a 1.65-meter high vertical final obstacle and difficult colors. The white standards that were replicas of Denmark’s Men at Sea monument were connected with red rails offering contrast on Friday. Today, that double had a grey top rail at A and yellow at B, which were not that easy for horses to see, especially coupled with the white standards.
Although that round was supposed to include 25 competitors, five riders withdrew in the interests of their horses’ welfare after a long week. Yuri Mansur of Brazil, who was seventh after Friday’s competition, did not ride because his horse, QH San Antonio, failed to pass the ground jury’s inspection this morning. Even though the list of those able to compete was expanded down to 30th place, but even so, there were still only 21 participating. They were, however, the cream of the original 102-rider starting list from every continent (except Antarctica, which didn’t field a team…).
The second round, for the top 12, had plenty of difficulty, up more than a notch from than the initial round. Among the tasks set for competitors were a first fence standing 1.6 meters, a double of liverpools with a vertical in and an oxer out set seven strides off a bend from a red and white oxer, and a triple combination of a triple bar to a vertical and an oxer that was 1.6 meters wide.
Maikel van der Vleuten on Beauville Z NOP at the liverpools.
Only one woman, Tiffany Foster of Canada, made it to the top 12, where just four riders jumped clear. Interestingly, the first woman ever to win the world championships, Gail Greenough in 1986, also was Canadian.
But Tiffany, who was tenth in the first round today, would not repeat that feat. In the second round, a rail in the middle of the triple combination, followed by another rail down at the ECCO vertical at fence seven, plus one time fault for exceeding the 77-second time allowed, added nine faults to Tiffany’s score, giving her a total of 17.95 penalties and 12th place in the final individual standings.
It actually was quite a good result at the level, and Tiffany had high praise for her mount, Figor, a 12-year-old Dutch warmblood (Zagreb X Indoctro).
“I’m thrilled with him,” said Tiffany, the highest-ranked female rider in the world at number 36.
Tiffany Foster and Figor. (Photo by Arnd Bronkhorst.)
“We’ve never been in this sort of situation before. I was too deep to the triple bar, and I think he was getting a little strong and I was thinking about the time.
“The jumps were big, and I have to learn how to give him more space as the jumps get going. This has been such a great experience and I’m so proud of him. I loved my horse before, but I love him even more now. Everything that he did for me this week and the feeling that he gave me; that’s my number one takeaway. I’m so thrilled.”
There was no U.S. representative in this class, as Brian Moggre did not qualify during Friday’s individual competition, while McLain Ward pulled up there after three fences down. The other two American riders, Adrienne Sternlicht and Lillie Keenan, did not qualify for the group of 60 who competed in that first individual competition. The U.S. was 11th in the team competition.
These Games were amazing. The talent we see in show jumping continues to improve, even when it has seemed to be at its pinnacle. There are always interesting horses and riders coming along.
In the former category, keep on eye on Cayman Jolly Jumper. He is a son of the great Hickstead, Eric Lamaze’s late 2008 Olympic individual gold medal and team silver mount. This 10-year-old gelding is registered as a Selle Francais out of a Quaprice Boimargot Quincy mare. Ridden by former world number one Simon Delestre of France, he seems to have inherited his sire’s athleticism and elasticity. Jolly Jumper (great name!) finished seventh.
And in the category of riders coming to our attention, Ioli Mytilineou of Greece certainly impressed, ending up 13th with L’Artiste de Toxandra265 an 11-year-old Belgian warmblood gelding (Toulon / Kashmir van Schuttershof ).
One of the many nice things about these championships was the recognition given to the grooms, who for too long have labored without acknowledgement to the public, in many cases. Their names were mentioned in conjunction with the announcement of the horses’ names, and they had their own lounge where they could relax and eat free of charge.
Click here for results.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 12, 2022
It was an FEI world championships show jumping team medal finals to make your head spin, with reversals of fortune aplenty during this evening in Herning, Denmark.
But there were two things that didn’t change.
The Olympic champion Swedes, who had taken control of the leaderboard at the Agria title meet from the beginning, refused to give up their claim on the gold medal, though the silver and bronze were up for grabs until the end.
The sign says it all.
And the other thing? U.S. fortunes failed to improve. The country had only two people riding today, going for individual honors, as the team stood 11th yesterday, one place away from qualifying for the medal round.
McLain Ward, who has contributed to so many team medals, bowed out midway through the course after dropping three rails with Contagious. And Brian Moggre, at 21 the youngest competitor in the championships, had to cope when his mount, Balou du Reventon, reared several times approaching the fourth fence, topped by a plank.
Brian didn’t give up and continued the course as his horse shook off the momentary confusion and jumped the rest of the difficult route. He finished 52d in his first world championships.
Brian Moggre and Balou du Reventon. (Photo courtesy U.S. Equestrian)
“I don’t know what he saw,” said Brian of his stallion.
“We came out of the corner and the fences come up fast and something happened. Show jumping is such an unpredictable sport. I think the first three fences, I might have put a little bit too much pressure on him, thinking about the time allowed, and came around to fence four and in that turn, he didn’t like so much pressure, and there was a miscommunication. But after that he just jumped incredible,” Brian continued, unfazed by what happened.
“I’d go as far to say it felt like one of the best rounds he’s ever jumped after that, so I was pleased that he finished well and we had a nice ending to the course and the week.”
McLain acknowledged it was “a rough week, but we will survive.”
He retired with Contagious because “This horse has given so much over the last several seasons in making it to Tokyo last year and pulling off being a part of that (Olympic) medal-winning team, and I said afterwards that was really an incredible feat. After weeks like this, you realize truly how hard it is to win those medals.”
McLain was on the USA’s 2018 world championships team that took gold in Tryon, N.C., as was Adrienne Sternlicht, who rode Cristalline in that competition and also in Herning, where she was 68th and thus not in the top 60 that competed today. The team’s other rider, Lillie Keenan, notched her first senior championships to finish 69th with Argan de Beliard.
“It was a disappointing week of results for sure, and we can’t duck that, but the young riders who were here gained a lot of miles and that will pay back for us down the road,” contended McLain.
U.S. Coach Robert Ridland is in agreement. He always puts younger riders on the team, trying to develop them for the future. But they are usually paired with several more experienced competitors. This time, McLain was the lone ranger in that regard. Horse injuries mandated that the team evolved the way it did.
“The five horse/rider combinations we have here are the best we have. Simple as that,” said Robert. (The fifth horse was Jessica Springsteen’s RMF Zecilie, who was withdrawn after being turned down in the first horse inspection)
“Reality is, as in any sport, the ups and downs of injuries plays a role. We unfortunately had the injury bug early on and lost two of three from our silver medal (Olympic) team (Laura Kraut’s Balontinue and Jessica Springsteen’s Don Juan).
Robert noted those horses sustained relatively minor injuries and both are in work again.
“We’re going to have them back in the fold,” he said.
In the raucous, packed Stutteri Arena, where Swedish fans clad in blue and yellow chanted their support for their team, the U.S was “up against veteran teams,” most particularly Sweden, “our arch rival that we went neck and neck with in Tryon, and neck and neck with in Tokyo,” Robert said.
After chatting with Sweden’s chef d’equpe, Henrik Ankarcrona, he noted, “they did a very good job with their veteran team, keeping intact every horse/rider combination that won gold in Tokyo.”
On the other hand, Henrik told Robert, “You guys have involved the next generation of riders in all your championships over the last 10 years. I’ve got the oldest team in Europe and you have the youngest team. Come Monday, reality sets in.”
Robert mentioned, “That was an interesting perspective. His four riders, the average age is 48-49. Three of our four are in their 20s, have been tested under fire and did a great job here. We didn’t miss by much. We had to be realistic about who we are competing against. The depth and quality of the top 10 teams are something like I’ve never seen before.”
The golden oldies Swedish team collected a total of a mere 7.69 penalties, though Peder Fredricson, the man who is usually rock solid, wound up as the drop score today with the generally reliable H&M All In. But no matter. The Swedes were miles ahead of the Dutch, who claimed silver as anchor Harrie Smolders put in a clear round with Monaco N.O.P. to make the team’s total 19.31.
Great Britain’s anchor Scott Brash dropped an uncharacteristic two rails with Hello Jefferson. However Harry Charles, who had two knockdowns yesterday, came back on Romeo 88 with the squad’s only clear trip of the day, making the team total 22.66 to stay ahead of Ireland (23.15) and earn its first world championships medal in 24 years. Those four teams and fifth-place Germany are now qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics, which had been the USA’s goal, though there is still time to achieve that in other competitions. France, which was sixth, is automatically qualified for its home Games.
World Number One Henrik von Eckermann of Sweden on the aptly named King Edward at the weird wall. (Photo courtesy Herning 2022)
Peder proudly pointed out that his older brother, Jens, was also on the squad.
“It’s our first championship together, I think we’re going to keep doing a few more. It was a good start,” Peder said with a grin. Jens, it should be mentioned, was fault-free. Actually, he was also fault-free yesterday, as was teammate Henrik von Eckermann. Sweden was the only team to have riders fault-free on both days.
Dutch course designer Louis Konickx outdid himself with a course that twisted and turned in a serpentine pattern, requiring the utmost focus from the riders and their horses.
It had a green theme (sustainability is a big deal for these games) with a weird wingless wall as the second fence showing off a green map of the world. The standards of the final obstacle depicted wind turbines. In between were other challenges, including a vertical that stood 1.65 meters over a liverpool.
But the piece de resistance was the 13th of 14 fences, a triple combination of red rails comprising a vertical two strides from another vertical, which was one stride from an oxer, and six strides from the final fence. Few competitors came away unscathed, whether they toppled a rail or exceeded the 83-second time allowed in the process of completing the route.
Among those who had problems there was French rider Julien Epaillard, who has a reputation for speed He had no time penalties, but his mount, Caracole de la Roque, toppled both the A and B elements of the triple. That also toppled Julien from the top of the standings, where he had been situated through two rounds, putting him down to 12th on 8 penalties.
Julien was replaced in the number one spot by the world’s number one rider, Henrik von Eckermann on King Edward.
Henrik noted the arena was “more hectic today.” That affected his horse.
“The applause and the light when entering made him turn”
He added “I was really lucky on the triple” when he brushed the B element and it didn’t fall down. The World Championship is difficult, but my horse is really great.”
The world championships medalists on the podium from left: the Dutch silver medal team, the gold medal Swedish team and the bronze medal British team. (Photo courtesy FEI)
The individual final will be held on Sunday, with the top 25 competing.
Henrik has 0.58 penalties as teammate Jens Pederson stands second with Markan Cosmopolit on 2.71, followed by Belgium’s Jerome Guery on Quel Homme de Hus (3.35), world number two Markus Fuchs of Switzerland with Leone Jei (4.36), Max Kuhner, Austria, Electric Blue (4.49) and Israel’s Daniel Bluman, Ladriano Z (5.14).
Canada, which finished 10th, has one rider going Sunday. That’s Tiffany Foster with Figor, who stands 15th.
New coach Eric Lamaze the 2008 Olympic individual gold medalist, stated, “I take full responsibility for my riders not being on top of their game. They got out-ridden. Not necessarily in the skill department, but in the international mileage department. It’s not easy to jump three days in a row. They rode their hearts out yesterday and they needed to do that again today.
Tiffany Foster and Figor. (Photo by Arnd Bronkhorst)
“We started off well and our plan was good – our second day proves that – but they didn’t finish the job. That’s why we need to be in Europe as much as we can, to help them learn how to ride in a tough second round.
“We need to work on the mental part of the game. We got to the second round and some people might call that a win but that’s not what I’m about and this was not a way to finish a championship. If you get that close, you don’t let it slip away.”
Click here to see the individual standings. Click on this link to see the team medals.
