Lexington, KY – This weekend horses and riders will take their first steps toward earning a chance to represent the U.S. at the FEI World Breeding Championships for Young Horses in Dressage, to be held in Verden, Germany, in La Cañada Flintridge, California. Six horses will contest the 2012 Markel/USEF Young Horse Dressage Western Selection Trials in the five-year-old division while one entry will show in the six-year-old division. These selection trials are being held in conjunction with the Dressage at Flintridge CDI*Y/J running May 24-27.

The third place finisher in the 2011 Markel/USEF National Young Horse Dressage Championship four-year-old division, Regalo, travels to the Flintridge Riding Center and looks to impress in his five-year-old year. Pinky Roberts’ Oldenburg gelding will again be ridden by Lientje Schueller.

Demonstrating the success of the Markel/USEF Young Horse Dressage Program, another entry from last year’s four-year-old Championship will contest the Western Selection Trials. Craig Stanley brings Brenda Linman’s Dutch Warmblood gelding Caliente DG, the horse he rode to sixth place at last year’s championships.

In the six-year-old division, Alice Womble’s Sanceo is the lone entry, but he is a strong one after placing fourth in the Markel/USEF National Young Horse Dressage Championship five-year-old division last year. Sabine Schut-Kery will ride the Hanoverian stallion.

Horses in the selection trials will compete in two tests in their respective age divisions. The Preliminary Test will be worth forty percent of the overall score. The remaining sixty percent will be earned in the Final Test.

All the combinations competing in the selection trials will be vying for a spot on the USEF Young Horse Dressage Short List from which representatives travelling to Verden will be selected. Additionally, these pairs will be looking to secure qualification for the 2012 Markel/USEF National Young Horse Dressage Championships.

For further information on the Markel/USEF Young Horse Dressage Program, please visit: http://www.usef.org/_IFrames/breedsdisciplines/discipline/alldressage/NatlYHProgram.aspx.

To learn more about the 2012 Markel/USEF Young Horse Dressage Selection Trials and the USEF Young Horse Dressage Short List, visit: http://usef.org/documents/disciplines/dressage/WBCSelectionProcedures.pdf.

For further information about the Dressage at Flintridge CDI*Y/J, visit: http://www.cornerstonedressage.com/.