Bacariza Changes Trainers at the Start of 2020 Show Campaign

Dressage

Spain

Spanish young riders team member Natalia Bacariza Danguillecourt has changed trainers in the lead-up to the 2020 show season.

As of 2020 the 18-year old Wellington based Spanish rider is officially a young rider and she has kicked off her show campaign at the Global Dressage Festival last weekend with a double victory in the Young Riders team and individual test.

Not her long-time coach Juan Matute Azpitarte was on the sideline, but American Grand Prix Elite squad listed Katherine Bateson-Chandler oversaw the training.

"So happy and proud of Natalia Bacariza Danguillecourt and her two fantastic horses in the young rider division this week," coach Bateson took to Facebook. "The boys taking turns taking the win."

Natalie's two irons in the fire are Dhannie Ymas (by Don Crusador), who was the 2015 European Junior Kur Gold medal winner under Juan Matute Guimon and which Natalia began competing two years ago, and Romantico Ymas (by Belissimo M), which she rode to an 8th place in the Kur finals at the 2019 European Junior Riders Championships in San Giovanni last summer.

Bacariza splits her time between winters in Florida and summers in Europe. Her family also owns a PRE breeding yard in Toledo, Spain.

"I’ve been training with Ton de Ridder since October and Katherine Bateson since December," Natalia told Eurodressage. "Both are alternating according to their schedule. They’ve both been a great help. I’ve stopped training with Juan Matute Sr because he is mostly based in Spain."

Natalia aims to qualify for the Spanish team for the 2020 European Young Riders Championships in Hartpury in July, but her spring competition plan has not yet taken shape.

"I still don’t know exactly what shows I’m doing," she said. "We’re for sure doing the Spanish Masters at the end of June to try to qualify to get on the Spanish team."