British dressage rider Emma Hindle and Wie Weltmeyer finished in 11 th place in the World Cup Final, 2-4 th April in Düsseldorf, Germany , with a score of 72.45%.
Competing for the first time in a World Cup Final, Emma chose a medley of Elton John hits to show off the powerful paces of Brookhouse Stud's 16.2hh chestnut stallion Wie Weltmeyer. Talking about the show Emma said; “Just being there was an inspiration. It is always a fantastic opportunity if you get to ride alongside such amazing people.
“We had a dream winter season and although he wasn't on top form in Düsseldorf he did go really well. He didn't have any problems with the electric atmosphere of the show, and I was the one who made the mistakes. The organisation of the show was fantastic and it's been a great experience for both of us.”
Dutch rider Anky van Grunsven secured a record breaking sixth World Cup win with the 10-year-old Hanoverian gelding Gestion Salinero, scoring 83.45%. Anky's pupil Edward Gal and Gestion Lingh finished in second place with 80.62%, and Hubertus Schmidt was third with a score of 78.87% on Wansuela Suerte.
The 34-year-old Emma Hindle left Great Britain for Sweden in 1993 to train with Kyra Kyrklund, but when Kyrklund moved to England in 1998, she decided to relocate and train with Dutch rider Ellen Bontje at Gut Neuhof in Dreieich, Germany
The Hanoverian licensed stallion Wie Weltmeyer was purchased in 2000. Uptil then Wie Weltmeyer was trained and competed by Holga Finken. Hindle's first show experiences aboard "Wally" were a revelation. " I thought right, I'm going to the Olympics,” Hindle told Chronicle reporter Nicole Lever. Hindle, who had only been riding Grand Prix for two years and Wally for six months, tried to qualify for the British Olympic team at the Aachen CDIO (Germany). It didn't work. In Aachen, Hindle finished worst of all the British riders and eliminated any chance she had of making the Sydney team. “If Wally had been a show jumper he would have refused three time,” Hindle told Lever “We completely misunderstood each other in arena."
Three years of persistent and focused training, Hindle and Wie Weltmeyer became the anchor of the British Team at the 2003 European Championships. She won the World Cup Qualifier in Berlin and finished 11th overall in the 2004 World Cup Finals. Athens here she comes!
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Related Link
Eurodressage On the Scene at the 2004 World Cup Finals