Schopf and Saumur Go Two for Two with Grand Prix Special Victory
Carrie Schopf (ARM) with Saumur. ©susanjstickle.com.
Wellington, FL – February 26, 2022 – A beautiful day of competition on Saturday of week 7 of the 2022 Adequan® Global Dressage Festival (AGDF) culminated in the feature class of the day, the Grand Prix Special CDI3*, presented by Fair Sky Farm. Armenia’s Carrie Schopf and Saumur made it two for two this week, following their win in the qualifier on Thursday with a victory in the Special.
Twelve competitors entered the stadium to strut their stuff, where towards the end of the class, Jessica Howington (USA) and her 15-year-old KWPN mare by Sir Donnerhall I x Gribaldi shot to the top of the leaderboard with a 70.149%. Just after her was Carrie Schopf and Saumur (Sancisco OLD x Tanzmeister I) who rode to a personal best of 70.979% to just edge out Howington for the blue ribbon.
“Anybody can win on a given day, especially when the scores were as close as they were today,” reflected Schopf. “But it’s really gratifying to have your work and your thought process rewarded.”
Schopf is an amateur rider who does have grooms who help her with her horses, but for Saumur, she does it all herself.
Their partnership was on full display today as Schopf utilized the 14-year-old Oldenburg gelding’s technical prowess in combination with her own enjoyment of the test to excel in the extensions.
She explained, “This is a very forward test in the trot work especially, and it’s forward that if you swing with them, you can really capture that energy. You can really let them sail, so I just stepped on the gas pedal and went!”
Boucher and Mourits Post Wins
Earlier in the day, Beatrice Boucher (CAN) continued her successful week with Summerwood’s Limei after besting the field of 14 competitors in the Intermediate I CDI1* class. This marks Boucher’s second international win in as many days with Monica von Glahn’s nine-year-old Hanoverian mare by Londonderry x Weltmeyer. The pair earned particularly strong marks in the flying changes with 7.5s and 8s, propelling them to a personal best score of 70.912%.
In the Intermediate A CDI3* class, Luuk Mourits (NED) rode Harmony’s Don’t Stop the Feeling to a win with a score of 68.235%. The 13-year-old Hanoverian gelding by Don Primus x Noble Roi xx, owned by Harmony Amateur Sports Foundation, bookended the performance with strong passes down the centerline and shined throughout both the extended and collected trot work.
For more information and results, visit www.globaldressagefestival.com.