Heike Kemmer's Bonaparte Retired at 2011 CDN Hanover

Dressage

German Dressage News

There was no public announcement leading up to this special moment, but Heike Kemmer retired her Olympic bronze medal winning Bonaparte in all discretion at the national dressage competition German Classics in Germany this past weekend.

In Hanover Heike Kemmer and the Hanoverian gelding Bonaparte performed their famous Beach Boys freestyle a final time in front of the audience after which they received flowers and a grand applause from the audience.

"At home he's modest and reserved, but in the show ring he grows and always gives it his all," Kemmer said about her top horse.

The now 18-year old Bonaparte is by Bon Bonaparte x Consul x Akzent II and arrived in Kemmer's barn as a foal. He was trained by Kemmer from the start and booked his first major FEI success by winning the Nurnberger Burgpokal Finals in Frankfurt in 2001.

In 2002 Kemmer and Bonaparte were awarded the Otto Lorke Prize for best upcoming young Grand Prix horse in Germany and he was named Hanoverian of the Year in 2004.

The pair has been instrumental for the German Grand Prix team winning gold at the 2004 Olympic Games, 2005 European Championships, 2006 World Equestrian Games. In 2007 the pair was only a reserve team member at the European Championships.

The highlight of their career was team gold and individual bronze at the 2008 Olympic Games in Hong Kong. Kemmer briefly returned to the show ring in the spring of 2009 and though they were successful, even at the 2009 CDIO Aachen, injury prevented the pair from getting selected back on the team for the 2009 European Championships.

The pair did not return to the show circuit in 2010 because the chestnut suffered from Lyme disease which quietly led to his official retirement yesterday.