Dutch auction company Equine Elite has come to the rescue and saved Dressage at Hickstead. Dane Rawlins, organizer of the CDIO Hickstead, lost his title sponsor this year and needed at least a £250,000 cash injection to keep the event going. Dane's brother Craig Rawlins has stepped up to the plate and signed a three-year contract that his company Equine Elite will be sponsoring the event. The 2010 CDIO Hickstead will feature the World Dressage Masters finals and is also the final Dutch WEG selection trial.
In Australia, Alexis Hellyer from NSW won the Victorian Young Rider Regional Championships on a horse bred by Australian journalist and editor of The Horse Magazine, Chris Hector. A student of Christine Crawford and Clemens Dierks, Hellyer is aiming to qualify for the 2010 FEI Young Riders World Cup Final in Frankfurt. Her mount Waca W (by Weltmeyer x Ahorn) sold at auction for 50,600 AUS a few years ago. Read more on the successful partnership of Hellyer and Waca W here. Also Hector wrote a three series' article on the life and training of Waca.Part I - Part II - Part III
Tiny van Helvoirt, wife of Huub van Helvoirt, has passed away at age 86. The Van Helvoirt couple are one of the most successful KWPN breeders ever. Tiny discovered Warmante (by Amor) the granddam of Jazz (by Cocktail), which they bred as well.
By the way, did you know that stallion Jazz' original name at birth was Jacob?
Juan Antonio Samaranch, former president of the International Olympic Committee,passed away on Wednesday 21 April 2010 at the Quirion clinic in Barcelona, Spain. Samaranch suffered from serious heart disease and was submitted to the hospital on Tuesday but could not be saved. He was the chair of the IOC from 1980 till 2001. Belgian Jacques Rogge succeeded him.
Horses.nl reported that the licensed Westfalian stallion BB-King (previously named Boston) has been sold to Toni Meggle and will be ridden by Dieter Laugks. This dark bay KWPN bred stallion by Johnson did not pass the KWPN performance test but was approved by the Westfalian verband. So far he has been ridden by Stefanie Dorr and was owned by a Belgian/Dutch syndicate consisting of Stable de Bekelaar, Serge Pais and WesTrade Stables.
Former U.S. Olympic team horse Brentina (by Brentano II x Lungau) has become a "mama". The first of two embryotransfer foals has been born. It is a black colt by Leatherdale Farm’s Damsey (by Dressage Royal). The second foal will be born in a few weeks and is by Leslie Morse's Grand Prix stallion Kingston (by Voltaire). See a photo of the colt on Dressagedaily.com
British pony rider Claire Gallimore won a lesson with Laura Bechtolsheimer. Horse Hero was on the scene to video tape that lesson. Watch the free trailer here in which Laura says not to ride the pony too tight in order to keep the hind legs activated.
FEI Focus Magazine interviewed Edward Gal right before the 2010 World Cup Finals and disclosed some fun information about his life not sitting in the saddle: When I'm not on a horse I enjoy... "shopping! and going out to dinner with Hans Peter. And I like to share family birthdays and occasions like that. I also like to mow the lawn andI'mabitofagardener–Ilikeitinmy garden. I like nice food but I'm not much of a cook, so Hans Peter does most of the cooking!" The qualities I most admire in other people are... "honesty, integrity and a little humility. I think we should be nice to each other, and not un- kind. And that we should also be a bit humble – I don't like listening to people who continually tell everyone how great they are. A little kindness goes a long way. My motto is... treat people in the way you would like to be treated yourself..." Read the full interview here
