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.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 11, 2022
It was bad news for the U.S. show jumping team today at the Agria FEI World Championships, as it finished just one place out from qualifying for tomorrow’s final round of Nations Cup competition. But it gets worse.
The goal for the show jumping team in these championships, as it was for dressage, involved a high-enough finish to qualify the country for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Dressage made the cut; show jumping did not.
Ten nations will go through to the team finals at these championships in Herning, Denmark. The U.S. finished 11th this evening in the first round of the Nations Cup. When the team jumping competition presented by Helgstrand wraps up Friday evening, the five highest-placing countries in the finals will qualify for Paris.
This autumn’s Nations Cup final in Barcelona also offers a chance for a spot in Paris, but the U.S. did not qualify for that competition due to complications involving the pandemic. The 2023 edition of the final does the same, so the U.S. will try to qualify for that.
The other alternative for a Paris ticket is next year’s Pan American Games in Chile, where three slots will be available to the highest-ranking countries which did not qualify previously. So all is not lost, but there’s work to do and plans to make for an important trip to South America in 2023.
Sweden, the Tokyo Olympic gold medal squad, is at the top of the team leaderboard in Herning, to the delight of its vocal fans dressed in the country’s yellow and blue colors.
One of Sweden’s equestrian heroes, Peder Fredricson with H&M All In. (Photo courtesy FEI)
It is followed in the standings by, as one might expect, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Great Britain and Switzerland, the western European countries that often dominate the sport. But Canada also made it (nice to know a North American flag is in the mix), with Ireland and Brazil wrapping up the top 10.
“Being one spot off is tough. It didn’t go our way today,” said Lizzy Chesson, the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s managing director of show jumping,
“It was just one of those years. If you look at the record since 2014, this jumping team has had an incredible record.”
True enough. The U.S. was the defending titleist of the world championships, having won gold in its last edition in 2018.
Lizzy noted two thirds of the Tokyo Olympic silver medal team, Laura Kraut’s ride Baloutinue and Jessica Springsteen’s Don Juan, are still recovering from injuries.
“They’re going to be back,” said Lizzy, but it didn’t happen soon enough for a trip to Denmark.
That meant there wasn’t as much choice of top horse and rider combinations as usual, so less-experienced riders needed to step up.
“At this level of the sport, you can’t afford to have two top horses not in the game,” Lizzy pointed out.
“We had a younger group here that really fought hard to get it done. They tried. No one had any major disasters, it was just minor things. Our younger athletes got great experience building for the future,” she pointed out.
McLain Ward, the U.S. four-time Olympic medalist, performed as expected in the Stuttari Ask Stadium with his usual textbook clear trip on Contagious today after a rail down in the speed opener yesterday.
Noting he had a long night trying to analyze what went wrong on Wednesday, McLain switched the time of when he would jump so he could have firmer ground for his horse. And it worked.
“After the third jump, I felt he was in different form than yesterday,” McLain said.
He is 12th individually and will compete with others in the top 60 for the individual medals to be awarded on Sunday.
Brian Moggre, at 21 the youngest competitor among the 103 who started in this competition, put in an amazing clear trip yesterday on Balou du Revonton but had a rail today. He stands 26th individually. I expected nothing less than a stellar effort from Brian despite his inexperience in senior international championships, because he has distinguished himself all along the line.
The other two members of the team did not qualify for the individual medal contest, finishing 68th and 69th respectively.
Adreinne Sternlicht, a member of the 2018 world championships gold medal team anchored by McLain, had a rail and time faults yesterday with Cristalline, and two rails today.
“My plan was to ride a bit more aggressive than yesterday,” said Adrienne.
About her mare, the rider commented, “She has not been at this level for a while, but she was fantastic today. We are both getting used to the level again. She has been out with an injury, so all has been about her well-being, she is more than just a horse to me. I feel blessed having this opportunity again after four years out.”
The other team member, Lillie Keenan, had two rails today with Argan de Beliard and three penalties for going over the 86-second time allowed for the 17 jumping efforts.
“My horse jumped really well today,” commented Lillie, who like Brian, is in her first senior team championship.
“For myself, I expected him to be more green. For the team. it was not what I needed to do. Next time, I need to believe in him more. It is my first championships, and not the last, I hope.”
The highly skilled Julien Epaillard of France kept his top placing in the individual standings with Caracole de la Roque.
France’s Julien Epaillard has ranked number one two days in a row at the championships. (Photo courtesy FEI)
“My horse was so fresh this morning, so I wasn’t in 100 percent control despite a small jog and some flatwork this morning,” said Julien, who warms up his horse in a pelham bit but competes in a hackamore.
Second in the standings is Scott Brash of Great Britain with Hello Jefferson, a horse on which he has spent a lot of time, being patient to develop a partner he can trust. The class took six hours to run, including breaks, as he pointed out.
“It’s quite a long time. We walked the course at midday, and, to remember what I walked at the end, you watch a lot of different horses and riders and they have bigger strides and smaller strides, but then you have to remember that the way you walked is focused on what suits your horse, so you have to remember that plan.”
He characterized his horse as, “a bit sharper today, a bit more tense, not just as smooth as yesterday, I didn’t think, but he was jumping great and I think he’ll be good tomorrow.”
Peder Fredricson, a pillar of the Swedish team, was fault-free on H&M All In and stands third.“I had a good plan after the course walk and I kept it,” said Peder, whose brother, Jens, number 10 in the rankings, also was fault-free with Markan Cosmopolit.
“When I am in there, I have to get the feeling of my horse and have the highest focus on the task,” Peder commented.
“I really have to concentrate the whole time and take one thing at a time. Jens and I had the same plan. He did seven strides to (fence) eight I kept the plan and did six. Our team spirit is great, and we are there for each other. Everything can happen and we have to take 1 day at a time and really do the best we possibly can. Tomorrow will be a long day.”
World number one Henrik von Eckermann of Sweden is fourth with King Edward, while the only woman among the top 17, Tiffany Foster, couldn’t talk enough about her ride, Figor.
Tiffany Foster and Figor.
“My horse is a bit sensitive and tends to get stressed, so it could go either way, but he was so cool in this atmosphere with the audience close by. He saved me on fence number four, after that I thought ‘Let’s do this for him’ and went for it. With a double clear, this is the first time on this level I dare to think we might have a shot against the big names.”
Every rider in the first five is carrying less than one penalty.
It was nice to see some competitors who are not big names and don’t come from show jumping powerhouse countries distinguish themselves. One was Roger Chammas of Lebanon, who missed the cut for the individual competition by finishing 62d. He had just a single time penalty this afternoon for a memorable round on Humphrey G today, and I was impressed.
“Today was just amazing,” he agreed.
“Yesterday, we had a tough time because it’s the first time on the course, and it is the first time my horse competes at this level,” said Roger, who had three knockdowns.
“I wanted to do good, and the horse is ready for it so I know the result will be good if I ride properly.” And that’s how he left the poles in place today.
It certainly wasn’t easy. Dutch courses designer Louis Konickx upped the ante without making the route too hard. He had varying levels of riders competing, and the challenges were appropriate.
Brian Moggre and a view of the “houses.”
He didn’t overdecorate the interesting fences, which had a bit of local color. The next-to-last obstacle was flanked by statues of legendary Danish writer Hans Christian Anderson and one of his creations, the little mermaid.
From the 4-meter water jump, it was eight strides to Hans Christian and then five to the final vertical (though a few ambitious riders with long-strided horses did it in four). That segment at the end had plenty of heart-breaker knockdowns.
Another interesting fence featured mischievous Danish trolls. The focal point of the ring, though, had to be the triple combination, two strides from an oxer to a vertical and one stride to another vertical. There was an expression I used to hear from riders walking a course when they saw big fences—“They’ve built houses out there,” and so it was with the triple. Really. The first part had houses as its standards, the B element had two lighthouses on either side and the C element repeated the houses.
For team standings, click here. For individual standings, click this link
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 10, 2022
Brian Moggre, only 21 and riding in his first international senior championships, made his mark as the top American finisher today in the Ecco FEI World Championships, not far behind some of the greatest names in the sport of show jumping.
The results of the speed class that kicked off four days of the discipline in Herning, Denmark, are led by distinguished French rider Julien Epaillard, 45. He was clocked in 79.48 seconds on Caracole de la Roque over the course of 17 jumping efforts designed by Louis Konickx of the Netherlands, under a format that adds 4 seconds for each knockdown.
“I had a good start and my horse felt relaxed today. I had my plan and followed it,” Julien said after his ride.
Commenting about his horse, he noted, “She jumps everything with a great scope but can sometimes react to the public.”
Julien Epaillard of France and Caracol de la Roque at the triple bar.
Even so, the rider who is ranked number nine in the world was able to keep everything under control with his mare, who is shoeless like the Swedish horses that excelled in the Tokyo Olympics.
Julien has 402 wins in 3,431 starts, and is known for his ability to ride fast, as demonstrated this morning. He has won gold, silver and bronze medals in both the Olympics and previous world championships.
In contrast, Brian has 27 victories in 404 starts, which have never included a competition on the magnitude of this one. But his performance did not reflect his lack of experience.
Riding Balou du Reventon, his fault-free round finished in 83.89 seconds. He now ranks 19th among 99 competitors, finishing 10 places ahead of U.S anchorman McLain Ward, who has four Olympic team medals and led the U.S. squad to gold in the last world championships, held in 2018 in Tryon, N.C. Brian understandably was overjoyed with his mount.
Brian Moggre and Balou du Reventon. (Photo courtesy of U.S.. Equestrian)
“He was fantastic. I am so, so happy. My plan after watching the first two riders from my team go (was) giving it a shot,” said Brian, who trains with Laura Kraut and her partner, British Olympic gold medalist Nick Skelton.
“I was going for it and to finish like this is a very great start of the weekend. My horse is such a gentle stallion outside the ring, but inside, he is such a powerhouse. He is fantastic, and has such a nice temperament.”
The first American to ride, Adrienne Sternlicht on Cristalline, had a knockdown that added 4 seconds to give her a time of 93.07. The veteran of the USA’s 2018 championships gold medal team stands 69th. Her teammate, Lillie Keenan, was fault-free but relatively slow on Argan de Beliard, 38th with a time of 87.23 seconds.
The U.S. is in ninth place on 9.6 penalties as Tokyo Olympic champs Sweden took the lead with 3.69. France is second on 5.44, even though anchor Kevin Staut had a fall when his horse looked down over an oxer. Belgium is a very close third with four strong performances and 5.49 penalties.
McLain said of his trip that included a knockdown, “It wasn’t the starting round I wanted to have, but Contagious dug in and we kept it on a good score.”
McLain Ward and Contagious. (Photo courtesy U.S. Equestrian)
Now the team faces a challenge.
“‘We have to jump some clear rounds. We’re sitting on a mediocre position…all the riders and horses are capable of it, but we certainly have to step up our game,” said McLain, who blamed a miscalculation on his part for the error in his trip. Contagious, he noted, “is afraid of everything but brave when he has to do his job.”
McLain called having mentored Adrienne and now working with Lille “an incredible source of pride.”
The course was just testing enough as a prelude to the Nations Cup that will decide the team medals tomorrow and Friday. There were faults around the course, but if you wanted to say there was a bogey fence, it was the triple bar one stride from a vertical in a double combination.
The ring is not perfectly flat, it is a bit elevated where the double stood, and that made it hard for some riders to judge the triple bar early in the going. By the end of the class, they tended to figure out what to do there. Meanwhile, a flat and narrow Longines wall, that I thought would cause problems, was handled easily by most horses.
Right behind Julian in the standings
The British, who stand fourth on 6.66 penalties, had a good day. Their two most experienced riders, Scott Brash and Ben Maher, were second and 10th respectively. Scott was on Hello Jefferson and Ben, the Olympic individual gold medalist from the Tokyo Games, left Explosion W at home and rode Faltic B instead.
“I am used to bigger horses, Faltic is smaller, but very athletic and I tried to ride as fast as I felt possible,” said Ben, who mentioned the question was deciding how much he would risk for a fast time.
Scott and Ben are the two most experienced British competitors in Herning. The other half of the team is composed of younger, up-and-coming sons of two well-known riders.
Harry Charles, who rode in the Tokyo Olympics, said Scott Brash is his idol, but he works closely with his own father, longtime team member Peter Charles. Romeo88 and Harry are 48th with a knockdown.
Joseph Stockdale, 65th on Equine America Cacherel, was a cricket player who had to make a choice whether to pursue that sport or ride full-time. He decided on the latter when his father, Tim, was dying, so he could continue working with the horse the family bought as a 3-year-old.
The rest of the top six is Switzerland’s Martin Fuchs, the world number 2, standing third with Leoni Jei, followed by Sweden’s Peter Fredericson and H&M All In. His teammate, world number one Henrik von Eckermann and King Edward, is fifth. The highest-placed North American is Canada’s Tiffany Foster with Figor, in sixth place,
Click here for the individual standings.
Click on this link for team standings.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 10, 2022
There’s a new queen of dressage.
Great Britain’s Charlotte Fry made it two victories in a row with the expressive Glamourdale to take the Blue Hors Grand Prix Freestyle this evening at the Ecco FEI World Dressage Championships. It happened the day after she beat the odds and Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour’s Vamos Amigos to win the Grand Prix Special.
Charlotte and the extravagant black stallion earned 90.654 percent for their freestyle as part of a British medley to tunes that included “God Save the Queen” and “Another One Bites the Dust.”
Lottie Fry and Glamourdale.
Odd juxtaposition, but the judges obviously liked it, giving her two 10s for choreography, use of the arena and inventiveness. They weren’t reluctant to hand out more 10s for everything from the extended canter (the gait in which Glamourdale excels) to extended trot, two-tempis and rhythm, energy and elasticity.
“He was just dancing and I was literally loving every second,” said an ecstatic Charlotte, only 26 years old and unable to believe what happened to her in front of 12,000 cheering fans at the Stutteri Ask Stadium in Herning, Denmark.
“I think I never dared to dream of a 90 percent,” she said, explaining that she really appreciated, “the fact that we got it here tonight at the world championships in our second-ever freestyle together with amazing new music.
“Glamourdale went in there and knew what he had to do and he could feel the atmosphere. If there’s a lot of crowd, he’s going to show off even more. I can just sit there, it felt so easy and he was just bouncing through his music.”
She was so excited that she jumped up and down when she stood on the top spot of the podium.
Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour is greeted by Princess Benedikte of Denmark during the medal ceremony.
The competition, presented by Helgstrand, included a bevy of stars, but what made it most exciting was that many saw it as a face-off between Glamourdale and Vamos Amigos, the anchor of the Danish gold medal team that triumphed in the Grand Prix over the weekend.
Cathrine looked nervous as she was led into the arena on her bay gelding, but he was on point, as always, when they got going to themes from “Les Miserables,” which earned 10s and one 9.8 for her music and its interpretation.
Vamos Amigos lacked the expression of Glamourdale, though he was perfectly correct, but what cost Cathrine was the extended trot. It garnered a 6, a 6.5 and a 7, in addition to 7.5s. In the end, her score of 89.411 fell just short of her rival’s. But she was happy anyway.
“It was crazy good to enter the arena today with all the audience meeting us already when we passed through the entrance of the arena,” commented Cathrine.
“I think we have had fantastic sport, what a medal podium we have. And I really thrive under this kind of pressure, it just makes me better. This championship has been good for Denmark and our sport.”
In third place, as was the case in Monday’s Grand Prix Special, the Netherlands’ Dinja van Liere on Hermes found her technical marks lagging behind her artistic marks (80.143/93.657) for a total of 86.900. The three women celebrated on the podium and off, joyfully shaking their bottles of champagne and spraying them on each other until officials told them to go get their horses for the victory pass.
The medalists take their victory pass.
Isabell Werth of Germany, the world’s most decorated dressage rider, wound up ninth on DSP Quantaz (83.339) who is workmanlike but not particularly exciting.
“It was a great experience for Quantaz. He needs more routine, but I am very happy with him today, he really listened to me,” said Isabell.
“We had some mistakes in our 2-tempis and he waited for me to tell him what to do next. We love to compete in this great atmosphere, and in the last piaffe pirouette I was hoping for the audience to cheer–which they did.”
Right behind her was the woman who hold’s the world’s freestyle record, Charlotte Dujardin, but Valegro her multi-gold medal mount is long retired and she was dealing with Imhotep here. He had never done a freestyle, and it was quite a credible effort, good for 83.132 percent. He’s only nine and full of energy, so she was clever not to be too clever and make the challenges she posed doable. Her mentor, Carl Hester, has said Pete, as the horse is known, may be the best he and Charlotte have ever had. That’s saying something.
“I’m so happy with Pete,” said Charlotte, who rode to the same music with which she won individual bronze at the Tokyo Olympics on Gio.
“He’s done absolutely amazing this week and I couldn’t have asked any more from him,” Charlotte enthused.
“He has taken everything in his stride, he’s gone beyond what I thought he could have done here. He’s dealt with the atmosphere and the crowd amazingly. When I go in, they all applaud and he stays very calm. He’s never been in that environment before, so I’m absolutely thrilled with him.”
The USA’s only competitor among the 15 who qualified for the Freestyle was Adrienne Lyle, sixth on Salvino (83.704). This was a first for her with the U.S. team. Adrienne missed competing in the freestyle at the Tokyo Olympics when Salvino wasn’t feeling up to snuff after he and his rider contributed to the team silver medal, and the freestyle at the 2018 world championships was cancelled due to heavy rain.
Adrienne Lyle finally gets her chance to ride the freestyle with Salvino at a team championship. (Photo courtesy U.S. Equestrian)
Herning offered a most welcome opportunity for her to really show off the stallion.
“He was very electric today in the warm-up,” Adrienne mentioned.
“This is the third time he’s been in the stadium now packed with people and he started to realize there was a big crowd in there and had a few more nerves than we normally do, but once we got into the ring, he took a breath and he knew what his job was and what he was doing and that’s what makes him such a special horse.”
She already satisfied her other ambition in coming to Denmark when the U.S. team finished sixth to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics, which was the squad’s main goal.
For full results, click here.
(Feature photo of Lottie Fry courtesy of British Equestrian Federation/Jon Stroud)
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 2, 2022
Boyd Martin, a member of every world championships and Olympic team since 2010, has been named to the U.S. Land Rover eventing squad that will compete in Italy’s Pratoni del Vivaro next month at the world championships. He’ll be aboard his Tokyo Games mount, Tseterleg.
Boyd Martin and Tsetserleg. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
Other members of the team are Will Coleman with Off the Record, winner of the 4-star Short at Aachen last year; Lauren Nicholson and the veteran Vermiculus; Ariel Grald (Master Plan), and Tamie Smith (Mai Baum).
Will has a direct reserve, Dondante, in case Off the Record is unable to run. Phllip Dutton, the individual bronze medalist at the 2016 Olympics and long a pillar of the team, is traveling reserve with Z.
He is also on the list of alternates with Sea of Clouds, the only off-the-track thoroughbred in the group. Other alternates are Jennie Brannigan (FE Lifestyle), Boyd with Federman B, Buck Davidson (Carlevo), Sydney Elliott (QC Diamantaire) and Liz Halliday-Sharp (Cooley Quicksilver).
by Nancy Jaffer | Jul 27, 2022
The roster of National Horse Show managers over the venerable competition’s 139-year history includes many memorable names, from Ned King and Eric Atterbury to Honey Craven, John Franzreb, David Distler and Leo Conroy, co-manager with Hugh Kincannon.
Joining the list this year is Stephanie Lightner, who brings a unique set of credentials to the job.
Stephanie, who succeeds Michael Morrissey as manager, noted “Being a woman and being asked to be in that position, it made me feel good. There aren’t too many (women) playing at that level. The times they are a-changing.”
But she was selected on the basis of her achievements, not as a symbol.
“I don’t feel like I have anything to prove,” she commented in an interview after her appointment was announced today.
“I like the opportunity to take on a challenge,” Stephanie added.
Stephanie Lightner, the new manager of the National Horse Show. (Photo courtesy of the National Horse Show)
Her background is impressive, having helmed World Cup finals in Las Vegas and serving as vice president of operations for Bleinheim EquiSports, an equestrian event management company based in San Juan Capistrano, Calif., which produces horse shows in there and in Las Vegas. U.S. show jumping coach is the president of the company.
Stephanie lives in Florida, but continues her work on the West Coast. There’s a lot on her plate, but as she said about the National, “I felt like it was one I couldn’t turn down. It was an honor to be asked. It’s a very prestigious horse show.”
She made her comments as her work for the day wrapped up at the Adequan®/USEF Junior Hunter National Championship – West under Bleinheim’s auspices.
Stephanie never visited the National during its heyday at Madison Square Garden when it was the highlight of the U.S. season, but she has worked as a steward at the show, so she has a degree of familiarity with it already.
When she was asked to manage the show, she said her first thought was of Mason Phelps, the National’s dynamic former president who died last year, and “trying to do something to make him proud.”
When she has discussions about the show, she mentioned that “If I think of anything big, I say, `What do you think Mason would think about that?’”
Though she is coming on board a bit late for the 2022 National, considering that the show gets under way in just three months at the Kentucky Horse Park, Stephanie is making sure, however, that “this first year, nothing falls through the cracks and that exhibitors are given the best show possible.”
The National Horse Show is invested in tradition, as the lineup for the ASPCA Maclay presentation signifies. Mason Phelps is in the orange jacket in the front row. (Photo © 2019 by Nancy Jaffer)
She knows everything should be properly in place, noting the group working with the show is a good one, and quite experienced.
Stephanie said she is always cautious about changes when doing something for the first time as she gains a deeper knowledge of the situation.
“I’m looking forward to going through this first year and coming out with a much better understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the horse show,” she said.
An issue with the National is that it doesn’t attract the type of crowds a competition of its caliber deserves. Stephanie understands that and will be looking to eventually bringing in more spectators.
“One of the focuses toward the future is to rebrand the National with some fresh new aspects to it that maybe will stand out a little more,” she mentioned.
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 3, 2022
The Brandywine Horse Shows, which were not held this summer due to lack of entries, are ending their 12-year run at the Devon, Pa., showgrounds.
When the Traverse City shows in Michigan were awarded the Junior Hunter Finals on the Pennyslvania competition’s dates, Jennifer Burger of Brandywine met with Matt Morrissey of the Morrissey Management Group that runs Traverse city and asked if he could move the finals to another week during the 12-week series. Trainers needed to take their clients to the finals in Michigan, which meant their stables could not participate at Brandywine.
While Matt agreed, the U.S. Equestrian Federation did not accept a date change. The conflict couldn’t be resolved, a situation would continue for two more years. That meant it was not possible to stage Brandywine without running into a huge financial deficit and affecting the integrity and reputation of the show.
“To jeopardize people’s great, fond memories, it wasn’t worth it,” explained Jennifer, Brandywine’s co-founder with Louise Serio.
“Brandywine Horse Shows has always captured the charm of a boutique event, while providing the quality of a high-level horse show,” said the co-founders.
“For 12 years, Brandywine has consistently provided an attention to detail and customer-centric culture rarely seen at other show series. We’ve always prioritized and supported the involvement of both local and national beneficiaries – we recognize that they’re just as integral to our event as the riders are.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 9, 2022
The U.S. show jumping team was left without an alternate at the FEI World Championships in Denmark. Jessica Springsteen’s horse, RMF Zecilie, a 2007 Holsteiner mare owned by Rushy Marsh Farm LLC, was part of the team’s practice jog prior to the first horse inspection and was deemed fit for presentation.
But yesterday she did not pass the jog that counts before the ground jury and was slated for reinspection today. She was examined by the USA’s veterinary team immediately following the inspection.
This morning, however, the team felt it was not in RMF Zecilie’s best interest to be re-presented before the ground jury, so the decision was made to withdraw her prior to the re-inspection.
Jessie was a member of the Olympic silver medal team in Tokyo last year, but with a different horse. The four riders named to the U.S. team of McLain Ward, Lillie Keenan, Adrienne Sternlicht and Brian Moggre will begin competition as the jumpers get under way tomorrow morning at 5 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jul 28, 2022
The U.S. Equestrian Federation’s dynamic director of sport, Will Connell, is leaving the organization after eight hugely successful years.
“What drives me is trying to find programs and solutions that will grow the pathway, increase performance and everything,” said the native of Great Britain, explaining his decision to take another road.
“You have to give 100 percent. When you start feeling that it’s time for someone else to take the reins, that’s the time for me to move on.”
Will, who is staying with USEF through Nov. 25, will continue living in Gladstone, N.J., with his wife, Lizzy Chesson, the USEF’s managing director of show jumping. She will remain in her post.
Thinking about his time with USEF, he said, “There’s a huge amount I’ll miss. I don’t do this job for the check at the end of the month, even though that’s quite generous.
“I’m sure walking away from a well-paid job in the face of a recession is perhaps not the most intelligent move, but I’ve always been driven by my instincts and I feel that now’s the time. There will be plenty of people out there who can take up the reins and run with it.”
As he reflected about his time in the job, he commented on how much he appreciates those who step up to back the sport.
“The one thing the U.S. has that I don’t think any other country has is the support from the donors and that ability to engender financial support from people who really get nothing out of it, other than liking to see the team win. That is something the U.S. must never lose.”
Other countries’ sports programs, he pointed out, are supported by the government or commercial interests, or lack financial aid entirely.
“When you see the enthusiasm of the (U.S.) donors and how they’ll get behind projects, I wish I had been better at structuring programs they could have gotten behind,” he said wistfully.
He pointed out that “there are some incredibly talented and dedicated people in the U.S. across the whole spectrum,” running from the grooms, coaches, athletes and horse owners to the leaders in the federation.
Will Connell at work at a championship.
One of his great achievements was putting the U.S. para dressage program in the spotlight, which paid off with the country’s first team Paralympic medal in Tokyo last year.
So what’s next for Will, who came to the U.S. in 2014 from a job as the British Equestrian Federation’s Performance Director. He had the responsibility for co-ordination and delivery of the UK Sport National Lottery-funded World Class Program, which covered eventing, dressage, showjumping and para dressage. In 2012, HRH the Princess Royal presented him with the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire at Buckingham Palace, in recognition of his service to equestrian sport.
That was a hard act to follow, but he did it when he came to the U.S. Now he’s still thinking about another appropriate move.
“In my ideal world, if I could write the next chapter, there would be four or five or six projects that would be differing in nature but very focused in outcome. You might as well dream big,” he mused.
“Probably within sport, but maybe other areas as well. I think I’m also the sort of person that until I make that jump, I’m not going to force myself to find out what the next step will be.”
He noted that he has yet to rewrite his resume.
“I think it still says, `Just left the army, ’” he laughed.
There can be no doubt that whatever he does will involve some aspect of his leadership experience. While in the British army, he served as commanding officer of the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery. In that prestigious position, he oversaw 165 soldiers and 130-plus horses that comprise the ceremonial saluting battery of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth’s Household Troops.
Will Connell (second from left, front row) with the Queen Mother during his King’s Troop days.
Combined with his knowledge of elite sport, he noted, “those experiences can shape what I do next in terms of what I deliver.”
He is looking forward to having more time for his family, both here and in Britain, and plans to return to the London International Horse Show, where he works as a volunteer.
Will sees that show as “a beacon, where elite sport meets entertainment. You’ve got sport at the very highest level and you’ve also got entertainment at the highest level. When you can bring those two together, that’s pretty special.”
He’s pleased that the FEI World Cup Finals are going to Ft. Worth, Texas in 2026, a follow up to the dressage, show jumping and vaulting Cup that will be in Omaha for the second time next year.
“I hope they can find that balance between entertainment and sport,” he said.
With the World Championships looming next month, he’s still all-in for helping the U.S. teams in para, dressage and show jumping qualify for the 2024 Paris Paralympics and Olympics with their performances in Herning, Denmark.
Dressage will be interesting, he notes, with the Germans looking to be far from the juggernaut that they usually are in that discipline. Although the Danes are favored for gold, there is plenty of room for other countries to maneuver for the medals.
In jumping, he called the quality of the teams “unbelievable. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a championships or Games with such depth of quality jumping teams.”
The U.S. squad has several young athletes, but he noted, in the big picture, the U.S. show jumping program has done extraordinarily well, and the pride he feels about it was obvious.
“When you look at what the jumping team has achieved since 2012; medals in 2014 (the Normandy world championships), 2016 (the Rio Olympics), 2018 (the Tryon world championships) and ’21(the Tokyo Olympics), the World Cup finals. It’s been incredible. I think it’s had more success than any other team in history, probably, over an eight-year period.”
And he’s optimistic about prospects going forward.
“When you look at what is on the horizon for Paris, it’s very exciting. I would say it’s more exciting now in ’22 looking at ’24 than in ’18 looking at Tokyo. The team is super excited to be going, and that enthusiasm will carry them onto the field of play and they will come together as a team.”
But he also cautioned, “Yes, it’s wonderful to win medals every time you go out, but more important, it’s about having the long game.
“The first stage of Long Term Athlete Development is fundamentals. FUNdamentals. Having fun in sport. While we have great and good governance, we must never lose track of the fact that ultimately and initially, sport should be fun taking activity.”
The USEF will be hiring a new director of sport, and plans call for Will to help that person get established in the job.
In the meantime, CEO Bill Moroney had kind words for the man who is departing.
“Will Connell has provided important leadership and contributed greatly to the success of the U.S. teams since 2015; his accomplishments and contributions are many,” said Bill.
“We support him in his decision and appreciate that he remains completely committed to our efforts to field and support the athletes, their horses, and their support teams for the upcoming World Championships, as well as his continued support of our sport staff team and programs across all the FEI disciplines.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Aug 8, 2022
The glamorous Glamourdale and Great Britan’s Charlotte (Lottie) Fry short-circuited expectations for a home country winner at the Ecco FEI World Dressage Championships in Denmark, edging Danish star Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour and Vamos Amigos for the Grand Prix Special gold medal by a bit more than one percentage point.
Lottie Fry and Glamourdale.
After leading her country’s team to gold yesterday, Cathrine fell short in the individual contest for the Special when she received a mark of 3 among 4s and a 5 for mistakes in the two-tempi lead changes.
“Vamos was really fantastic in the ring, we enjoyed ourselves immensely and the crowd do a bloody good job supporting me in the ring. Vamos Amigos is the cutest little gelding, and he just loves the stadium, the audience and the whole atmosphere,” said Cathrine, acknowledging the “blip” that affected her score of 81.322.
But Glamourdale was right on point.
“It’s literally incredible. I have no words for this,” said Lottie, a 26-year-old, who was completely in control of her expressive black stallion. His extended trot and canter work was breathtaking, captivating what was a good-size crowd for a Monday in the 10,000-seat Stutteri Ask Stadium.
“He was incredible, the atmosphere was incredible and he went in there and just did everything I could ask. He was just ready for it today,” said Lottie, who marked at 82.508 percent, with 9s and 10s for his final halt and a range of marks from 9 to 10 for general impression.
Lottie, who was on her country’s bronze medal team at the Tokyo Olympics with Everdale, the sire of teammate Charlotte Dujardin’s energetic Imhotep. Lottie is the daughter of the late Laura Fry, who also rode for Britain.
“I really felt I had to do something extra today because we came in straight after Cathrine and we tried our best,” said Lottie.
Never one to lose any points, Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour executes a perfect halt with Vamos Amigos.
“I actually heard the crowd being loud in my canter work and it was amazing. Yesterday, I had problems with the pirouettes, but Isabell Werth gave me some pointers to work with and it was much better today, she is simply the best, such a nice person and she has been my idol since I was a kid.
“Glamourdale is nothing short of amazing right now, and yet I know so many things I know we can work on to improve, it is only his first season.”
I’m an I-told-you-so kind of person (not one of my better traits) and you’ll remember I said yesterday that I liked Glamourdale better than the more highly touted Vamos Amigos—a wonderful horse, but a plain bay can’t captivate like a flashy black stallion in my book. Especially if there are mistakes.
But of course, Vamos Amigos is lovely and did get a 10 for the trot half-pass and twice for the difficult passage-piaffe-passage transition that tripped up more than a few competitors.
Dinja van Liere of the Netherlands with another personable stallion, Hermes, completed the podium. Transition problems with the passage/trot/passage and the transitions from trot into collected canter when Hermes looked as if he spooked downgraded her performance, but she still was in line for honors with 79.407 percent.
The medalists: Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour, silver; Lottie Fry, gold and Dinja van Liere, bronze.
In a rare occurrence, Isabell Werth of Germany did not add to her lifetime collection of 62 medals when she finished fourth on DSP Quantaz, who doesn’t have quite the flair of some of her other horses. He was marked at 79.073 percent.
Glamourdale’s victory gallop.
Right behind her, in fifth, was her teammate on the bronze medal German squad, Benjamin Werndl on Famoso OLD (78.237 percent). The Germans were missing his sister, world number one Jessica Von Bredow-Werndl, who is pregnant. Another member of the German team, Frederic Wandres, was supposed to compete in the Special but withdrew Duke of Britain at the last minute.
Britain’s once and future superstar Charlotte Dujardin (those Brits love their Charlottes) was sixth with 77.523 on the very green 9-year-old, Imhotep, who is a bundle of energy. Used to living outdoors at home, he spends a lot of time being handwalked in Denmark.
Even so, when Charlotte rides him, she said, “I feel like I’m on high speed and full power. He’s so enthusiastic.” He wants to do everything; she compared it to driving a go-kart.
“When he gets it all under control and waits for me, I think it’s going to be spectacular,” she said.
It was only the third Grand Prix Special for her horse, known as Pete. He’s never done a freestyle.
“I’m just trying to ride and give him confidence,” she said.
Gareth Hughes, also a member of Britain’s silver medal team, was right behind Imhotep, seventh in the standings with Classic Briolinca (77.280),
The mare was undone on the first day of the Grand Prix Saturday when the crowd started clapping as she was going down centerline to finish her test and blew the halt. (There’s a rule that says the halts have to last at least three seconds, and her wasn’t.) The crowd has been better-behaved since then, now that they have seen that their well-intended enthusiasm had the wrong effect.
“Today she felt really calm and relaxed,” Gareth said of his horse.
“She’s got such good mechanics and she’s really regular,” added Gareth, who was pleased with his ride.
“Where we finished, I don’t care.”
Gareth revealed yesterday he had contracted Covid, but he didn’t test positive until he got to Herning. Today, he tested negative for the second time, having tested negative previously last night.
“I don’t want anyone to feel uncomfortable,” said Gareth, adding he was “a long way away from everyone in the stadium.” It is outdoors, not an enclosed arena like Madison Square Garden.
There were no masks on the podium for the team medals, thank goodness–enough of the Covid craziness and photos of everyone in masks from last year–but he said he abided by Denmark’s rules on handling the virus. How many people do you think were in the stadium who might have been positive for Covid if they tested?
Tomorrow is a rest day, so we’ll have to wait and see what happens Wednesday evening in the freestyle. Will Vamos Amigos fulfill expectations for gold? How will the lively Imhotep handle that challenge? Can Glamourdale make it two in a row?
Only two U.S. riders made it to the Special, which had 28 placings. The top 15 qualified for the freestyle, which was redemption for Adrienne Lyle and Salvino, who had trouble yesterday in the canter half-passes to bring down their score when she had to slow to a walk to get reorganized.
Adrienne Lyle and Salvino in the Special; we’ll see them again in the freestyle. (Photo courtesy U.S. Equestrian)
Adrienne pulled it out this time with marks of between 6.5 and 7.5 for that movement, and finished ninth with 75.699 percent. The score gets her into the freestyle, which has extra importance in Herning because it was not held at the last world championships in Tryon, N.C., due to storms.
“He didn’t put a foot out of place, he felt even better than the Grand Prix,” said Adrienne.
As she assessed her ride on Salvino, she said, “Overall, he felt really honest,” noting, “I can just sit up there and pilot him around. He’s not a horse that likes to make mistakes and was rather upset after the Grand Prix that he got his legs tangled up.”
She praised the stallion’s owner, Betsy Juliano, who is very supportive and has enjoyed Salvino’s journey. That trip likely will include a visit to Paris in 2024 for the Olympics, since the U.S. squad qualified for those Games with its sixth-place finish in Denmark.
“He’s taken us everywhere we dreamed to go,” Adrienne said of her mount.
Things didn’t go as well for Adrienne’s teammate, Steffen Peters, and Suppenkasper, who wound up with a score of 73.708 percent that put them 17th, two away from the magic number that would have gotten them in the freestyle.
“Overall, I’m very, very happy with him,” said Steffen about the 18.2-hand horse he compared to “a gigantic teddy bear,” but added, “I wish the results would be better. The judges felt very different than I did, but that’s part of the game.”
He was getting assistance in Herning from Debbie McDonald, Adrienne’s mentor and the USA’s former dressage technical advisor, whom he has known for 35 years. Debbie had called him back then asking for help, and now he asked her for help.
Steffen Peters and Suppenkasper.
And while we’re on the subject of USA problems, let me go off topic for a minute and mention that RMF Zecilie did not pass the horse inspection for the U.S. show jumping team, whose world championships start Wednesday morning. (The freestyle is that afternoon). Zecilie, who will have an opportunity to be re-presented, is the mount of U.S. team traveling alternate Jessica Springsteen.
This evening, Denmark said goodbye in a moving ceremony to retiring Grand Prix veteran Cassidy, Cathrine’s horse, a sprightly chestnut she called, “not the most obvious Grand Prix star.”
Cathrine Dufour and her pal Cassidy on the eve of retirment. (Photo courtesy Ecco Herning)
But he excelled with her focus and the help of an “awesome team of trainers.”
Cathrine, whose parents gave her the horse when she was 17 and he was six, said, “By working with the talents the horse is given naturally, you can go really far, and I think Cassidy is a great example of that.
“And then he has just taught me love of the sport, and love of competing, as well as the daily training. He is the entire cornerstone in my love of the equestrian sport. He is completely unique and will likely be the most special horse I have had and will ever have.”
For Grand Prix Special results, click here
