Whisper of Excitement as New Reem Acra FEI World Cup Dressage Season Begins

Adelinde Cornelissen and Jerich Parzival from The Netherlands won the 2010/2011 Reem Acra FEI World Cup Dressage title at Leipzig, Germany. Photo: FEI/Kit Houghton.

Lausanne (SUI), 18 October 2011 – As the Reem Acra FEI World Cup Dressage 2011/2012 season gets underway at Odense in Denmark this weekend (21-23 October), there is a whisper of excitement running through the world of international dressage.  This sport, which relies on the technical skills and innate instincts of the riders along with the grace, elegance, willingness and athleticism of their horses and the expertise of a panel of judges, has experienced a tsunami of change in recent years, and the new-found unpredictability of the formerly pedantic discipline has energised it like never before.

For so many years, Dressage was dominated by the same few names, but in the modern era it has grasped the concept of greater engagement with the public without shedding its links to its classical past, and many new stars have been born.  The explosive arrival of the sensational Dutch duo, Edward Gal and the stallion Totilas, blew away the cobwebs and shone a bright light into the future as they blazed a trail through the 2009 and 2010 seasons with displays of pure showmanship and energy.  That partnership no longer exists, but the legacy they have left behind includes the desire to hold onto the massive increase in public interest created by their star quality.

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US Sweep in First Half of Individual Dressage Competition at 2011 Pan American Games

Steffen Peters and Weltino's Magic. Photos: www.stockimageservices .com

After scoring Team Gold Sunday afternoon, the U.S. Dressage riders went to task again, this time in the first half of the Individual Final. Riding the Intermediaire I test, all four U.S. riders kept the level of their Game high, and continued to thrive in the main arena at the Guadalajara Country Club. They swept the top three places, and head to the freestyle on Wednesday in Medal position.

Read about the Team Gold medal effort here: http://usefnetwork.com/news/7751/2011/10/16/gold_for_us_dressage_team_at_2011.aspx.

Steffen Peters (San Diego, CA) topped the scoreboard again on Weltino’s Magic, this time scoring 78.079% in another valiant effort. Heather Blitz (Wellington, FL) is second on Paragon with a score of 77.184% and Marisa Festerling went one better than in the Team competition, finishing third on Big Tyme on a score of 74.316%.  Cesar Parra (Whitehouse Station, NJ) rounded out the U.S. effort with a sixth place finish on Grandioso on a score of 72.000%.

Weltino’s Magic continues to rise to the occasion for Peters, despite one mistake early in the test, Peters was pleased with Jen and Bruce Hlavacek’s 9-year-old Westphalian gelding. Weltino’s Magic nearly broke to canter in the first trot extension across the diagonal.

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Champion Driver Suzy Stafford and Sjaantje Take Home National Championship Title at the 2011 International Friesian Show Horse Association World & Grand National

Suzy Stafford and Sjaantje took the National Championship in the Friesian Carriage Driving Open class at the IFSHA World and Grand National. (Photo courtesy of Rick Osteen)

Lexington, VA (October 17, 2011) – Decorated driver Suzy Stafford hasn’t let her success at the 2011 World Pony Driving Championships in Lipica slow her down.  Recently returned from Slovenia where she drove the half-Arabian mare Miss Josephine to an Individual Bronze Medal, Stafford hasn’t been back in the United States for a month before earning another championship title.  She drove Sjaantje, a 6-year-old Friesian mare, to the National Championship in the Friesian Carriage Pleasure Driving Open division at the International Friesian Show Horse Association (IFSHA) World and Grand National.  The mare’s owner, Gail AuMiller of Dreams Come True Farm in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, drove Sjaantje to top honors in the Amateur Carriage Pleasure Driving division and the pair also took the Reinsmanship Championship.

The IFSHA World and Grand National took place October 5-9, 2011 in Lexington, Virginia.  The IFSHA is dedicated to the promotion, showing, and exhibition of the Friesian horse and its derivatives, and the Championships featured a wide range of disciplines.  This year’s carriage driving classes were the largest driving classes to date at the Friesian National Championships, and Sjaantje, also known as “SJ”, proved her mettle by earning top placement while showing against some of the top members of her breed.

Continue reading Champion Driver Suzy Stafford and Sjaantje Take Home National Championship Title at the 2011 International Friesian Show Horse Association World & Grand National

Don’t Miss This Tonight! Free Webinar – How Good Riders Get Good – A Lifetime of Insights with Denny Emerson

Date: October 17th
Topic: How Good Riders Get Good –  A Lifetime of Insights with Denny Emerson
Speaker: Denny Emerson
Time: 5:00 pm Pacific  7:00 Central  8:00 Eastern
Format: Simulcast – attend via your phone or computer
Duration: 45 minutes

The Open Session
USEA Hall of Fame Inductee and author of “How Good Riders Get Good,” Denny Emerson is a wealth of knowledge and one of the most respected horseman (across all disciplines) in the equestrian sports community.  He will discuss the cross roads and critical decisions that riders must make in their careers in order to truly become “good.”  This session will be open to both horse professionals and their customers. We expect it to be quite inspirational.

Members Session – Live Q&A and Personal Tips on Equestrian Career Planning
Speaker
: Denny Emerson
Date: October 17th
Time: Immediately following the open session
Format: Simulcast – attend via your phone or computer
Summary: This members only session will enable our members to engage in some “one on one” discussion with Denny about their own careers.

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Brazilian Lusitano Stallion Wins Interagro Lusitanos High Score Lusitano Award at Dressage at Devon

Nancy Himmelblau and Suplicio Da Roposa won the High Point Lusitano Award at Dressage at Devon. Todd Grace, a U.S. representative for Interagro Lusitanos, presented Himmelblau with her award. (Photo courtesy of JRPR)

Devon, PA (October 17, 2011) – Suplicio Da Roposa, a gorgeous 12-year-old Lusitano stallion owned by Nancy Himmelblau, captured the High Score Lusitano Award during the prestigious Dressage at Devon Horse Show. Sponsored by Interagro Lusitanos, the largest breeder and exporter of Lusitano horses in the world, the High Score Lusitano Award recognizes the highest scoring Lusitano during dressage competitions and highlights the dynamic and competitive Lusitano breed.  Suplicio earned a 73.7% in the Iberian Horse class in the Breed Division with Bruce Griffin.

Himmelblau, from Somerset, New Jersey, was thrilled with her stallion’s performance as well as the fact that he rode away with the Lusitano High Score Award. “This was his second time to compete at Devon, but his first time in the Iberian Breed class,” she said. “I train with Suzanne Marshall and she is the one who introduced me to the breed.”

Marshall, who was at Devon with Himmelblau, said she knew Suplicio as a five-year-old in Brazil. “When we went to Brazil to look for a horse for Nancy, I was shocked to find out that Suplicio was for sale,” Marshall said. “The Lusitano horse chooses its owner, and after Nancy rode him he didn’t want her to leave the ring. He chose her.”

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Ellerstina Wins 2011 Tortugas Open Final in Argentina with Last Second Goal

La Dolfina and Ellerstina were playing out the additional 30 seconds in the last chukker of the Final of the Tortugas Open in Argentina on Saturday 15 October 2011. La Dolfina, who led throughout the match, missed a big chance to seal what could have been their first title in the opening competition of the Triple Crown in Argentina, when Adolfo Cambiaso failed to convert a 60-yard penalty, with less than a minute to go on the clock.

In a dramatic final chukker, Facundo Pieres scored two goals that allowed Ellerstina to tie at 13-13, after being outscored by La Dolfina during the whole game. But with only two seconds left on the clock and with everyone expecting extra time, Gonzalo Pieres Jr took the ball and scored the goal that meant not only a 14-13 win over La Dolfina, but also Ellerstina’s fifth consecutive title in the Tortugas Open.

Ellerstina have now won a total of six Tortugas Open Finals, with five of them consecutively (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011). This win also keeps Ellerstina’s hopes alive of completely a back-to-back Triple Crown victory as they now prepare for the second leg of the title – the Hurlingham Open, from October 18 – November 6, 2011.

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Schaefer Raposa Earns Top Honors in Pessoa/USEF Hunter Seat Equitation Medal Finals at Pennsylvania National Horse Show

Schaefer Raposa wins the Pessoa/USEF Hunter Seat Equitation Medal Finals at Pennsylvania National Horse Show. Photo: Phelps Media Group

Harrisburg, PA – Capping off an eventful junior weekend at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show, the Pessoa/USEF Hunter Seat Equitation Medal Finals presented by Randolph College saw Schaefer Raposa of Wellington, FL, earn the coveted championship honors. Edging out some of the most skilled young riders in the nation, Raposa smoothly tackled the first two rounds aboard her talented mount Charlie Z, as well as one challenging final test. Her quiet confidence garnered the top spot by evening’s end, with Brittany Hurst of Jackson, NJ, and Allison Fithian of Monterey, CA, finishing second and third, respectively. Rounding out the top four from the final test was Katie Tyler of North Kingstown, RI.

Today’s championship event featured two demanding rounds of competition followed by a test of the top four riders. The first course featured three imposing double combinations, a skinny coop without standards, and a triple bar. The judges invited the top 25 riders to return for the second course, which began with a three fence bending line, an oxer-oxer double combination, and a difficult plank vertical.

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Gold for US Dressage Team at 2011 Pan American Games

The Gold Medal-Winning U.S. Dressage Team. Anthony Trollope/ Stockimageservices.com

The U.S. Dressage Team’s Gold medal never looked in doubt today at the 2011 Pan American Games. They started off confidently and with each ride, the margin improved. They stormed to victory and won their fourth consecutive Pan American Games Team Gold medal – a first in the sport of Dressage. Their combined average score of 74.421% left them well clear of the Canadians who won Silver with a combined average of 70.413%. Colombia put in a valiant late effort to surge into the top three with 69.632%.

Led by Olympic veteran Steffen Peters (San Diego, CA) on Weltino’s Magic – the only combination to score over 80% – the U.S. Team put on an exhibition. Peters’s score of 80.132% is a Pan American Games record. A strong anchor rider, Peters had the luxury today of a little less pressure due to the fact that the entire team put in top 10 performances.

“It was one of the best tests this horse has done,” said Peters. “I have to say a big thank you to my teammates because they gave me a very relaxed position to start in today. Over the past few years I have always had to carry a lot of weight on my shoulders as the very last rider but the team did an awesome job, every single horse, every single rider.”

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Martin & Lyman Produce Clear Rounds to Claim 2011 USEF National Eventing Championships

Boyd Martin and Ying Yang Yo. Photo: Shannon Brinkman

Elkton, MD – Sunday brought an action-packed slate of show jumping at the 2011 Dansko Fair Hill International. With the top riders in both the CCI3* and CCI2* divisions tremendously close, clear rounds were at a premium. Boyd Martin and Kylie Lyman rose to the occasion producing fault-free rounds to win their CCI3* and CCI2* divisions as well as claim 2011 USEF National Eventing Championships.

The leaderboard in both the divisions at the Dansko Fair Hill International saw great fluctuations as a result of Sally Ike’s challenging track.

Full scores are available here: http://www.evententries.com/livescoring/14839.html.

2011 USEF National CCI3* Eventing Championship

Martin, the leader following the dressage phase, jumped a clear round on Ying Yang Yo to clinch his second USEF National CCI3* Eventing Championship. Martin (West Grove, PA) and the 15 year-old Australian Thoroughbred gelding rattled a few rails but all stayed in place for the pair to finish on a score of 52.

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Schwizer Scoops Maximum Points at Rolex Opener in Oslo

Pius Schwizer is presented with a Rolex watch by Magali Dubois Vaucher from Rolex. Photo: FEI/Roger Svalsrod.

Oslo (NOR), 16 October 2011 – Switzerland’s Pius Schwizer swept to victory in the opening leg of the Rolex FEI World Cup Jumping 2011/2012 series at Oslo in Norway today with a thrilling last-to-go run from Carlina.  With 14 into the jump-off it was never going to be an easy one to take, but the 49 year old rider raced home to pin Germany’s Philipp Weishaupt and Souvenir into second, while Portugal’s Luciana Diniz and Winningmood slotted into third.

“This is my very first success in a World Cup qualifier, so I’m super-pleased with the result!” Schwizer said after collecting the winner’s prize of a Rolex watch.  “I’ve been second and third a few times, but it feels really great to be first – and Carlina was brilliant today!” he added.

DIDN’T COMPROMISE
The compact Telenor Arena in Oslo measures just 35 metres by 75 metres, but course-designers Terje Olsen-Nalum and Anders Hafskjold didn’t compromise on height and width, giving the 40 starters plenty to think about.  The triple combination at fence six – oxer, vertical, oxer – proved influential, but it was the 1.70m-wide oxer at fence nine that hit the floor most often in the first round as nine horse-and-rider combinations faulted there.

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