Tag Archives: 2012 Olympic Games

*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Dressage, Events, FEI, Olympic Games

British Maintain Team Lead as Dujardin and Valegro Shine in Olympic Dressage

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Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro produced an Olympic record-breaking score in the Dressage Grand Prix to give Great Britain a marginal advantage over Germany going into the Grand Prix Special on Tuesday which will decide the fate of the Dressage team medals. Photo: FEI/Kit Houghton.

London (GBR), 3 August 2012 – A fabulous performance from Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro ensured that Britain maintains the lead in the team competition after the Dressage Grand Prix concluded at the London 2012 Olympic equestrian venue at Greenwich Park today. But the advantage is a very slender one, as Germany lies only just over half a point behind going into the medal-deciding Grand Prix Special next Tuesday.

The Dutch lie third, boosted by a brilliant test from double Reem Acra FEI World Cup Dressage champions Adelinde Cornelissen and Parzival who slotted into runner-up spot ahead of Germany’s Helen Langehanenberg (Damon Hill) and Kristina Sprehe (Desperados) who claimed third and fourth places individually. There was a time when tense situations really overwhelmed the Dutch rider’s big chestnut gelding, Parzival, but he has learned to cope much better in recent years. However Cornelissen had an un-nerving moment as she rode down to the arena. “He almost stopped and said ‘Aaaagh, what are all those people doing in there?’ But when we got going he said, ‘Oh, I know this stuff’, so it was fine,” the 33-year-old rider said with a laugh afterwards.

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*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Dressage, Events, Olympic Games, USEF

US Olympic Dressage Team in Fifth Place after First Half of Team Competition

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Steffen Peters and Ravel led the U.S. team with a score of 77.705% (Shannon Brinkman)

Greenwich, UK – Steffen Peters (San Diego, CA) returned to the Olympic Games with Ravel and proved that the 14-year-old KWPN gelding still has what it takes to be competitive at the highest level of the sport of dressage. Four years after they were fourth Individually in Hong Kong at the 2008 Games, Peters and Ravel scored 77.705% in Greenwich Park’s main arena to lead the U.S. Team to fifth place at the conclusion of the first half of the Team Competition.

“I can’t explain the feeling you get from Ravel when he’s on but today was one of those days,” said Peters. “I’m just thrilled that Ravel is still the same horse after all those years.”

Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro set the mark and lead the British effort as they look to win their first Team Gold in dressage. Their score of 83.663% was never in danger of being touched. Adelinde Cornelissen and Parzival are second for The Netherlands on 81.687% and Helen Langehanenberg and Damon Hill are third for Germany. The British lead by a narrow margin over the Germans in the Team score, as the top seven teams head into August 7th’s Grand Prix Special.

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Competitions, Dressage, Events, Olympic Games, USEF

U.S. Jumping Team Jogs Up Beautifully at 2012 Olympic Games

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Beezie Madden and Coral Reef Via Volo (Joanie Morris)

Greenwich, UK – Following the completion of the first half of the dressage competition, the Jumping horses got their first glimpse of the main arena as 90 horses from 26 countries were presented before the Ground Jury at the jog. The U.S. Team looked sharp under the care of veterinarian Dr. Tim Ober, farrier Dr. Todd Meister, physio Janus Marquis, and their grooms (listed below). George Morris is serving as Chef d’Equipe; he will retire at the end of 2012.

The U.S. Jumping Team is led by two-time Gold medalists Beezie Madden (Cazenovia, NY) and McLain Ward (Brewster, NY) who claimed Team Gold in 2004 and 2008 together will ride Coral Reef Ranch’s Coral Reef Via Volo and Grant Road Partners’ Antares F respectively in both horses’ first Olympic Games.

Madden also won Individual Bronze in 2008 with Authentic. After his retirement she built a new superstar out of Coral Reef Via Volo. Together they won Team Gold and Individual Silver at the 2011 Pan American Games. They shared those Team honors with Ward and Antares F. Clark Shipley grooms for Coral Reef Via Volo, this is his third Olympic Games.

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*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Dressage, Events, FEI, Olympic Games

British Riders Take the Lead as Dressage Gets Underway at Greenwich Park

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Carl Hester and Uthopia took the early lead for Great Britain in the Dressage Grand Prix at the Olympic equestrian venue at Greenwich Park today. (Photo: FEI/Kit Houghton)

London (GBR), 2 August 2012 – Britain’s Carl Hester and Laura Bechtolsheimer got the host nation off to a great start when claiming the top two places in the Grand Prix on the opening day of Dressage at the London 2012 Olympic Games in Greenwich Park today.

But Bechtolsheimer wasn’t content with her score of 76.839 with Mistral Hojris which leaves her just under one percentage point behind her team-mate as the second tranche of riders take on the Grand Prix challenge tomorrow. “I’m pretty gutted for my team that the score didn’t reflect what we thought it would be,” said the 27-year-old British rider who took three silver medals at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in Kentucky (USA) two years ago with the same horse. “It is by far the lowest percentage that I’ve had in a few years. I hope it is just because the marks are lower here,” she said.

And she may have every reason to be concerned, because the mighty Germans, whose dominance of this sport at Olympic level includes 12 team and seven individual titles, sent out only one of their team members today. That was Dorothee Schneider who steered her lovely young mare, Diva Royal, through a calm and tension-free test to post a score of 76.77 for third place at this halfway stage of the Grand Prix competition.

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*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Dressage, Events, Olympic Games, USEF

Ebeling and Rafalca Set Mark for U.S. Olympic Dressage Team

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Jan Ebeling and Rafalca (Shannon Brinkman)

Greenwich, UK – Olympic Dressage got underway on Thursday in the main arena at Greenwich Park and the British put on an incredible display in front of an enthusiastic crowd. They had two riders to go in based on their draw and ended up taking the lead of the five teams who had two horses to compete on the first day. The United States drew sixth, meaning that only Jan Ebeling and Rafalca took to the arena on the first day for the U.S. Everyone is chasing the Brits who are trying to win their first ever Team Gold in dressage. They are led by Carl Hester, who had the highest score of the day on Uthopia. They scored 77.720%, just over a point higher than their teammate Laura Bechtolsheimer and Mistral Hojris.

Ebeling (Moorpark, CA) led the way for Team USA in the Grand Prix scoring 70.243%, riding Ann Romney, Amy Ebeling, and Beth Meyers’ lovely 15-year-old Oldenburg mare Rafalca. The pair delivered on the expectation to set the mark for the team with a quality, consistent effort. The mare was generous and obedient and they produced a nearly clean test with just one small mistake in a pirouette.

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*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Dressage, Events, FEI, Olympic Games

Olympic Dressage Is Next Up at Greenwich Park

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The fabulous London 2012 Olympic equestrian venue at Greenwich Park where Grand Prix Dressage takes centre stage tomorrow. Photo: FEI/Kit Houghton.

London (GBR), 1 August 2012 – After all the hustle, bustle and frantic excitement of Eventing over the last few days, it’s time to regain composure and settle down for the next equestrian discipline of the London 2012 Olympic Games at Greenwich Park. The first inspection of the Dressage horses took place yesterday evening, and all 50 were given the thumbs up to start. Tomorrow morning (2 August) Dressage action gets underway at 11.00 local time, when Denmark’s Anne van Olst and Clearwater will be first into the arena in the Grand Prix.

In a change to the previous format, the team medals will be decided by the combined scores of the Grand Prix and Grand Prix Special. The top 18 horse-and-rider combinations, and those tied for 18th place, will then qualify for the Freestyle Final which is a stand-alone competition from which the individual Olympic champion will emerge.

The Grand Prix will run over two days, Thursday 2 and Friday 3 August and the top seven of the 10 competing nations will qualify for the Grand Prix Special team medal-decider on August 7. The Freestyle Final will bring the equestrian events at London 2012 to a close on Thursday August 9.

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*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Dressage, Events, Olympic Games, USEF

American Dressage Horses Shine at 2012 Olympic Games

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Ravel and Steffen Peters (Shannon Brinkman)

Greenwich, UK – The four American horses presented before the Dressage Ground Jury in the main arena at the 2012 Olympic Games painted a picture of healthy composure. A mixture of experience and youth will represent the United States when the Dressage competition gets underway on Thursday with the Grand Prix. Ten teams and 20 individual will be representing their countries. The U.S. has drawn sixth.

The four grooms, veterinarian Dr. Rick Mitchell, Physio Tom Meyers, and Todd Meister and Steve Teichman of Chester Country Farriers ensured that the horses looked sound and healthy for the 2012 Olympic Games. Eva Salomon is the Chef d’Equipe and Anne Gribbons serves as the Technical Advisor.

The following three riders will represent the U.S. on the Team:

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*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Eventing/H.T., Events, FEI, Olympic Games, Show Jumping

The Germans Simply Do It All Again to Clinch Double Gold at Greenwich

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(L to R) Sweden's Sara Algotsson Ostholt (silver), Germany's Michael Jung (gold) and Germany's Sandra Auffarth (bronze). Photo: FEI/Kit Houghton.

London (GBR), 31 July 2012 – Team Germany repeated their 2008 Olympic medal-winning performance when claiming Eventing team and individual gold at the London 2012 Olympic equestrian venue in Greenwich Park today. Such was their supremacy that they clinched the team title even before their last rider went into the ring, and Michael Jung set a new record in equestrian sport when becoming the first-ever event rider to hold Olympic, European and World titles at the same time. What a way to celebrate his 30th birthday!

The finale brought four fabulous days of Eventing sport to the perfect conclusion. After the destination of team gold had been established, the battle for silver and bronze was waged between Great Britain, Sweden and New Zealand, and it was the host nation that was eventually rewarded with silver while the Kiwis claimed the bronze.

It seemed that Sweden might be compensated for being pushed off the team medal podium when Sara Algotsson Ostholt went into the individual final as sole leader after Germany’s Ingrid Klimke left two fences on the floor in this morning’s team medal decider. But a last-fence error saw the Swede having to settle for silver, while Jung showed his extraordinary class to clinch the gold, with his team-mate Sandra Auffarth securing individual bronze in equally convincing fashion.

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*Featured/Spotlights, Competitions, Eventing/H.T., Events, Olympic Games, Show Jumping, USEF

O’Connor Leads American Olympic Games Effort; Germany Sweeps Gold

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Karen O'Connor and Mr. Medicott (photos: Shannon Brinkman)

Greenwich, UK – The German Olympic Eventing Team was in a class of its own as history was made at Greenwich Park. Michael Jung led a charge that finished with him winning Team and Individual Gold in a flawless effort on Sam. They were the only combination to finish the entire competition without adding anything to their dressage score. That score of 40.6 meant that Jung is the first person ever to be the reigning European, Olympic, and World Champion simultaneously.

Sara Algotsson Ostholt led after the cross country with Wega for Sweden but her Gold medal turned to Silver when they impossibly dislodged the front rail of the last fence of the individual show jumping round. It appeared to happen in slow motion. Sandra Auffarth bookended the German effort, picking up Bronze on Opgun Louvo. Just 4.2 faults separated the top three individuals.

The German invincibility began its display in the Team competition; they finished on a three-day score of 133.7, handling everything the British could throw at them. The Brits gave it a serious effort before a hugely supportive crowd, but they finished up Silver on a score of 138.20. New Zealand rounded out the top three with class performances from all five of their riders. The U.S. Team finished seventh on a score of 208.6.

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Community/Charity, Dressage, Olympic Games, Phelps Media Group

The Road to London Goes through Wellington

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Olympians Adrienne Lyle and Wizard, winners of the 2012 World Dressage Masters Palm Beach Grand Prix Special. Photo by Susan Stickle

July 30, 2012 – Wellington, FL – There must be something in the air in Palm Beach County, or else something in the water, that grows champions, because when it comes to Olympic dressage, the road to London goes straight through the Village of Wellington.

The Florida town with a permanent population of 57,163, along with its neighboring burgs, can lay claim to full-time or part-time hometown honeys hankering for Olympic gold in London and competing here including: Steffen Peters, Tina Konyot and Adrienne Lyle, who ride for the U.S.; David Marcus, Jacqueline Brooks, Diane Creech and Ashley Holzer, who wear the Canadian maple leaf on their shadbellys; and Tinne Vilhelmson Silfven, who rides for Team Sweden.

And the list of former Olympians in dressage who call Palm Beach County home − at least part of the year − includes Michael Poulin, Carol Lavell, Michelle Gibson and Lisa Wilcox who rode for the U.S., Lars Petersen from Denmark and Bent Jensen, a former Dane but now a citizen of the U.S.

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