A sleepless night because of an unpleasant but successful re-inspection early in the morning did not rattle World Cup title defender Adelinde Cornelissen. The Dutch number one Grand Prix rider was focused as ever on her 15-year old Dutch warmblood Parzival (by Jazz x Ulft) and steered him to victory in the Grand Prix at the 2012 World Cup Finals in 's Hertogenbosch on Friday 20 April 2012.
The World Cup format this year included a random draw for the Grand Prix, which gave a fair chance to any competitor to ride at the end of the class. It has been scientifically proven that a late start is more advantageous for high points based on the Regency effect and the judges' ability to compare rides. In the past all the best riders were last to go, which pushed their scores to even greater and sometimes unfair heights. This year at the World Cup the draw determined that some of the best riders had to go first and the "other" riders were last. Show organizer Gerrit Jan Swinkels complained at the press conference about this system as it reduces the entertainment factor and excitement of the show. Winner Cornelissen also stated she prefers to go last. A lower ranked rider was not asked his opinion on finally getting the opportunity to ride at the end of the class. The debate at the press conference certainly raised the question what is most important for the sport (and to the FEI): fair judging in dressage or entertaining the crowds?
Lone Jorgensen and her exciting star De Vito were first to go, followed by Adelinde Cornelissen. At the start of the class the level of excitement boomed straight away and there was no waiting to sit on the edge of one's seat. The World Cup Grand Prix was stimulating from the first ride.
Adelinde Cornelissen might not have had the ideal preparation for this Grand Prix but her routine and experience took her a long way. She started out strongly with an expressive extended trot and large half passes. The second extended trot was quite conservative. Parzival's piaffe and passage work stands out with the clarity in the rhythm and major buoyancy, but today he was croup high most of the time and in each piaffe he loudly ground his teeth. The two tempi's were superb and the zig zag well regulated despite a hiccup at the start. In the pirouettes the horse beautifully took the weight on the hindquarters. Both the extended canter and the final trot extension were ridden with the hand-brake on and Parzival stalled in the final piaffe at X, anticipating the halt.
The seven judges presiding (Wust, Rockwell, Clarke, Tornblad, Judet, Fouarge, Hoevenaars) scored Adelinde's ride a winning total of 78.024%, a high point score which she has received on numerous occasions in the past for much nicer rides than the one she had today in Den Bosch. Senior judges Stephen Clarke and Ghislain Fouarge seemed more on the dot with their 76.596% and 75.426% scores.
"My goal this year is clearly London. I am tuning everything to that and the World Cup Finals are part of my build-up," Cornelissen explained. "As title defender I only had to do two shows so I miss some show routine. This resulted in a few mistakes. We'll clean those up in the next few weeks aiming for the Dutch Championships in Hoofddorp."
German Helen Langehanenberg could have made personal history with her Westfalian stallion Damon Hill (by Donnerhall x Rubinstein) beating Cornelissen. She was carrying the leading percentage score half way through her gorgeous test, but due to a few interruptions in the canter work her score dropped to 76.125%. The extended trots were powerful, the half passes flowing and relaxed. The first piaffe-passage was superb and the transitions smooth. The extended walk was outstanding, the second piaffe-passage brilliant in energy, sit and clarity of rhythm. In canter, however, the young Langehanenberg slightly lost her edge. The two tempi's were big but could have been straighter in the body. In the ones a few changes should have been more jumped through from behind, as well as be more uphill and ground covering. The final centerline promised to be a magnificent one, but there was a communication error in the passage right before the halt; an imperfection which gnawed more points off the score. Throughout the test Langehanenberg had an ultra-light contact with the bit which made her entire ride look graceful and harmonious. If Helen Langehanenberg stays totally clean in the freestyle, she can certainly challenge Cornelissen for the World Cup title!
"I sadly had a few mistakes at the end of the test," Helen commented after her ride. "But he's in brilliant shape and so willing to do it. He's always motived to do it."
Italian Valentina Truppa and her Italian bred Eremo del Castegno (by Rohdiamant x Weltmeyer) finished third with 75.106%. The chubby bay gelding has much power in store and is incredibly gifted in piaffe and passage. In the trot extensions he's impressive in front but barely achieves the required overtrack. The collected trot on the short side often appears to be too passagy but the half passes were scopey. Eremo certainly showed pep in his step. He took the weight on his hindquarters in piaffe and was pure in rhythm but ground his teeth. In the extended walk the horse missed overstep. The second piaffe was excellent, but in the second passage he became slightly uneven with more activity from the right hind leg. The tempi changes were uphill, but not so nicely laid out on the diagonal starting early. The pirouettes were solid and the final centerline was strong.
The Italian was beaming when she took a seat at the press conference table. "My horse was really good and concentrated," she said. "I didn't expect to be third because the riders here are really strong. There are many famous riders here. I'm really happy.
Hans Peter Minderhoud and the Austrian owned 12-year old Dutch warmblood stallion Tango (by Jazz x Contango) finished fourth with 73.404%, a score which immediately strengthened his position as a Dutch Olympic team contender. The trot work was fluent and while the extensions showed lengthening of the step, the horse came behind the vertical and got tight in the neck in all of them. The passage was wonderfully off the ground and in piaffe the horse has a lovely silhouette, but could show more impulsion and electricity. Tango rakes in tons of points in the 2-beat movements, but in canter the liver chestnut loses his suppleness and swing over the back and becomes unclear in the 3-beat rhythm. This shows in the canter extension as well as in the tempi changes, which were correct but lacked expression and reach. The pirouettes were very nice. In the final piaffe at X the horse lost the impulsion.
"I'm very happy with my fourth place and would be ecstatic if I could accomplish the same tomorrow in the freestyle," Minderhoud commented.
British Richard Davison and Lady Derby's Westfalian gelding Hiscox Artemis (by Florestan x Delphi) had the ride of a lifetime in Den Bosch and slotted in fifth with 73.374%. The bay gelding is not the most bubbly in trot but he is a piaffe-passage machine which should put straight 9s and 10s on the score board. Artemis bounces off the ground, is very regular, his rhythm is like clock work and the transitions are impeccable. The halt at entry was not immobile. The rein back was excellent. In the second extended trot Artemis anticipated the passage and started to brake early. The first piaffe was slightly forward. The extended walk was good, but the collected got compromised in the rhythm. The tempi changes were correct, but the two's can be straighter and Davison rushed into the ones.
"He was great and and during the test he was so easy it felt like he was on auto-pilot," Davison told Eurodressage. "All I had to do was point him. He is now so good in his mind that in his training I can dig deep enough to find the treasure."
Nine riders scored above 70%. Patrik Kittel saddled his wife Lyndal Oatley's Swedish bred Toy Story (by Come Back II). The massive bay showed great trot extensions and a nice passage, but does not take the weight on the hindquarters in piaffe and gets wide in front. In canter the horse need to be more uphill. Kittel was very quiet in the saddle and held a steady contact with the bit which generated an overall nice silhouette. Danish Lone Jorgensen and her De Niro offspring De Vito could have scored more than 71.337% (7th) place if the piaffes were more expressive and energetic. The bay gelding has an amazing frontleg and is incredibly graceful in his movements.
Swedish Tinne Vilhelmson and the Hanoverian Don Auriello (by Don Davidoff) certainly could have finished higher than an 8th place (71.003%) had the long legged dancer not been phased by the tv-camera on the short side. The horse spooked regularly in the corner which affected his concentration. The bay could be pushing more from behind in passage. The piaffe is still small, but there is potential for more. The trot work is wonderful. German Nadine Capellmann and her elegant Baden Wurttemberger mare Girasol (by Gribaldi x Landioso) ranked ninth with 70.441%. The mare is brimming with talent for piaffe and passage and though the contact with the bit is light, it could have been more steady. The mare should move more from behind, over the back into the contact. She appears slightly disconnected in the body in the trot extensions and struggles to find the rhythm in the piaffe. The pirouettes and the collected walk were highlights in Capellmann's test. German
Isabell Werth was not on form and neither was her Rhinelander gelding El Santo (by Ehrentusch). Werth flew through the test with high tempo extensions and half passes, which were huge in ground cover. The passage was very forward as Werth was trying to bolster the energy for the piaffe, but on all three occasions El Santo went splat on the spot and it required Werth's patience and skill to get him moving again. Werth had mistakes in the one tempi's and dropped out of the extended canter. The zig zag and extended walk were very nice. She scored 69.802% and left the arena shaking her head.
The German contestants, amongst many others, were quite shaken by the sudden passing of team coach Holger Schmezer on Thursday evening. "It's really hard for everybody," Langehanenberg commented. "We discussed it yesterday and we all agreed to ride today. Holger would have wanted us to ride. It was his life, his aim all his life."
Text and Photos © Astrid Appels - No Reproduction Allowed
Eurodressage Coverage of the 2012 World Cup Finals