There was some good news for U.S. dressage at the Aachen International Equestrian Festival Saturday.
It was comeback time for Steffen Peters in the 4-star Grand Prix Freestyle, where he and Suppenkasper finished third in the wake of a frustrating nineteenth-place effort in the Grand Prix on Thursday.
Mopsie, as Suppenkasper is known, was swinging to his familiar music, “We Can Dance” and living up to “Staying Alive,” as he and Steffen finished on 76.430 percent.
The class was won by U.S.-based Julio Mendoza Loor, who rides for Ecuador, on his Pan American Games individual gold medal mount, Jewel’s Goldstrike (78.920). His dream was only to ride at Aachen, but to win was more than he hoped for.
Julio Mendoza Loor and Jewels Goldstrike. (Hubert Fischer photo)
Steffen was another rider thrilled with how well his horse did, and joyfully praised Suppenkasper.
“A wonderful freestyle tonight,” enthused Steffen, a member of the U.S. Olympic team.
“Of course, a bit tricky after the difficult Grand Prix. Mopsie was still very excited this evening. In the beginning, the first centerline clearly showed some tension.”
But as the 16-year-old Olympic veteran who became the “rave horse’” after his freestyle at the Tokyo Olympics went viral, moved through the two-tempis and his first pirouette, “he settled down and did a wonderful, clean freestyle with a relaxed walk tour, very good piaffe/passage,” Steffen pointed out.
The rider complimented “a very good confident horse I will have the pleasure to ride in Paris.”
Steffen Peters and Suppenkasper in the freestyle. (U.S. Equestrian photo)
He thanked chef d’equipe Christine Traurig for her help, as well as his team of 20 years, from his wife, Shannon, to Mopsie’s owners Akiko Yamazaki and Jerry Yang, as well as the horse’s groom and veterinarian.
Earlier in the day in the 5-star Grand Prix Special, Endel Ots came close to a personal best with Zen Elite’s Bohemian, finishing tenth (72.064 percent). He led the way as the U.S. squad was fourth by mere fractions of a point in the Lambertz Nations Cup team standings. Endel and Bo are the traveling reserve combination for the Olympic team.
Jane, the 10-year-old mare who has been a sensation during the U.S. riders’ European tour, has had no real experience in front of a big crowd and was not up to her usual standard in the Special. She looked tense in front of the fans in the Deutsche Bank Stadium. It was obvious she wasn’t operating on her usual wavelength right from her entry and halt, for which she got a mark of 6.2. Rider Marcus Orlob stayed cool and did a good job of getting through the test, but he finished sixteenth on 70.468 percent.
Click here for the dressage Nations Cup team standings.
The U.S. riders deserve a lot of credit for the team’s very respectable placing against more experienced riders from other countries.
Endel Ots and Bohemian in the Special. (U.S. Equestrian Photo)
“I was super happy with Bohemian today,” said Endel, who was sick but persevered. Aachen is unseasonably cold and a lot of people have picked up a bug.
This photo of Frederic Wandres on Bluetooth Old says it all about Saturday’s Aachen weather.Endel, who had never competed at Big Tour internationally until he got the ride on Bohemian, noted it was windy with “a little bit of weather, but the atmosphere was great. It was really fun to ride at Aachen and finish in top 10 in the Grand Prix Special. My goal was just do a nice harmonious Grand Prix Special test.”
He only began riding the horse this year, and keeps polishing his partnership with the gelding, who was fourth in the Tokyo Olympics with Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour of Denmark in the saddle.
“Each time I take him and ride him in the ring and show him, I get a better idea of what he needs from me to help him. I was really happy with him. He stayed with me, he was really calm in that show environment,” Endel pointed out.
“It was just more so me piloting him around, helping him with the balance here and there. He knows the test so well like the back of his hand (hoof?). It was really fun. I’m really looking forward to the freestyle.”
That will be happening Sunday as the show ends its run at the Soers. It likely will be another chance for Germany’s Isabell Werth to shine on Wendy de Fontaine, the mare on which she won the Special with a resounding 78.085 percent to lead her nation’s squad to the team title.
Isabell Werth collects another trophy with Wendy de Fontaine. (Franziska Sack for CHIO Aachen)
Isabell noted of Wendy, who is a new ride for her this year, “She always wants to give her best. It felt very harmonious today and I have the impression we are gradually becoming one unit.”
Click here for the Grand Prix Special results.
In other good news for the USA, Chester Weber — the lone American in the four-in-hand driving competition — is standing third. He was twelfth in the marathon, won by who else but world number one Boyd Exell. Chester’s victory in the dressage last week boosted his standing as he set his sights on the podium.
Chester Weber in the marathon.
Click here for marathon results
Click this link for individual standings