Ulrik Sorensen has decided to resign as Danish youth team trainer, a position he has held for five years. The Grand Prix rider wants to concentrate fully on his job as Sport Director of Blue Hors Stud.
Sorensen took up the position of Danish youth team trainer in January 2013, succeeding Jon D. Pedersen. From 2005 till 2012 Sorensen was the Norwegian Youth Team trainer, but he swapped for his own home country after Pedersen's surprising end of contract in December 2012.
On 15 June 2017 Ulrik began his new job at sport director at Blue Hors stud. Denmark's biggest stallion station is looking to reinvent itself and professionalize its sport division even more by expanding the staff. Until then stud manager Esben Moller wielded the axe of power, but Möller now has to share the work load with several new staff members. The management of Blue Hors underwent several changes in 2017. Ole Magnus Petersen was appointed new ceo of the Blue Hors company after having worked at Lego. Blue Hors stud and Lego are both owned by Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen. Sorensen was appointed sport director and American based Danish trainer Lars Petersen travels once a month for extra coaching of the riders.
For four months Sorensen combined his job as sport director with that of team trainer, but he has now decided to focus on Blue Hors fully. In his first year as team trainer, Cathrine Dufour won the 2013 European Young Riders Championships in Compiegne.
"The talented young riders deserve full attention. I have been very pleased with my work as a coach, and it is certainly not without hesitation that I have made this decision," said Sorensen in an official statement. "Nobody is served with a job half-finished and there are only 24 hours a day. So, unfortunately, the time has come to hand the batton to another."
The Danish Equestrian Federation is seeking to appoint a new team trainer by the end of the year.
Photo © Astrid Appels
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