Valegro's groom Alan Davies has been nominated for the 2014 FEI Best Groom award. This award is reserved for those all-important, behind-the-scenes team members who work around the clock to ensure that horses get the best possible care and attention. Davies (GBR) is nominated alongside Jackie Potts (GBR) and Jessica Benbow (GBR).
Dujardin's amazing achievements with Carl Hester and Roly Luard's Valegro have been recognised on a massive stage when she was crowned The Sunday Times Sky Sports Sportswoman of the Year on 20 November 2014. Charlotte was unable to collect her award as she's the other side of the world in Australia but Team GBR team mate Natasha Baker stepped in to deputise.
The rides on several young licensed Dutch warmblood breeding stallions have been allocated to a few of Holland's young top professionals. Dinja van Liere has received the ride on the 4-year old For Gribaldi (by Gribaldi x Michelangelo). Gert Jan van Olst's young stallions Everdale (by Lord Leatherdale x Negro) and Diego (by Negro x Don Gregory) will both be competed this winter by Diederik van Silfhout. The Dutch WEG team rider is also training Fairytale (by Lord Leatherdale x Negro).
After an extensive search the British Equestrian Federation's (BEF) Chief Executive, Andrew Finding OBE, has named Dan Hughes as the organisation’s new Performance Director. Dan will take on the responsibility for the coordination and delivery of the UK Sport National Lottery funded World Class Programme for the disciplines of eventing, dressage, showjumping, and para-equestrian dressage and with it the hopes of the nation to deliver championship success for Great Britain’s equestrian teams at the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Norwegian team rider Camilla Kalseth will be sidelined for a while as her top Grand Prix horse Carte d'Or has sustained an injury. The bay gelding, who already missed competing at the 2013 European Championships as well as the 2014 WEG in Caen due to fitness issues, injured his eye at home. Veterinarians were forced to remove the eye. The combination is supposed to return to the show ring in 2015. Get well soon.
Danielle van Mierlo's junior rider's horse Reggea (by Kennedy) passed away at age 16 on 20 November 2014. The black Dutch warmblood was already retired three years ago as a 13-year old after sustaining a tendon injury. The tendon injury flared up again a few weeks ago and it was decided to euthanize the horse as he was suffering from lameness. Van Mierlo and Reggea were members of the A-team for Dutch Junior and Young Riders. Their career highlight was finishing fourth at the Dutch Junior Riders Championships.
Horses.nl reported that thieves broke into Patrick van der Meer's stables in The Netherlands. They forced their entry into the cafetaria of the stables and ended up stealing the coin machine and some bottles of liquor. Remarkably the burglars didn't leave before first making themselves a hot dog!
Horses.nl also published that Dutch Grand Prix rider Petra van Esch fractured her collar bone, falling off a bucking horse. "I was riding towards the arena on a youngster and in the second I was not paying attention, he started bucking. I crashed full on on the concrete," van Esch wrote. She was operated on to improve the quick recovery of her collar bone.
Belgian FEI rider Isabel Cool has lost her first FEI horse Equitano, a 19-year old Oldenburg gelding by Ex Libris. The bay gelding was retired a year and a half ago and had to be put down after a bad fall in the field. Cool and Equitano were fourth at the 2006 Belgian Young Riders Championships and were team reserves for the 2006 European Young Riders Championships after finishing third in the Nations' Cup at the CDIO-YR Stadl Paura.