European Young Rider and Young Rider World Cup champion Lotje Schoots has left Stable van Silfhout. Schoots has ended her personal relationship with Diederik van Silfhout and is therefore saying goodbye to working at his stable.
"I have a few tough weeks behind me, but I made my decision," Schoots explained. "I'm going to quit working at Stable Van Silfhout. The ending of my relationship with Diederik makes it mentally very difficult to train the horses there each day with passion. I had a great time, learned a lot and would never have wanted to miss this in my life."
Schoots will return to her own business in Abcoude, The Netherlands, which she manages together with her parents. Due to her departure, Schoots will also have to say goodbye to Luxform's Popeye, Van Silfhout's horse which she has been riding for five years. Last week, Lotje and Popeye made their Grand Prix debut together and scored 66,34% to finish second at the indoor show in Ermelo.
Photo © Dirk Caremans
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