Completing a young rider triumph for the Spanish nation, Marta Galan Dalmau and Carmen Alanis Espigares made full use of their home ground advantage in Toledo. With Marta victorious in both the team and individual tests, Galan Dalmau left fellow countryman Carmen to take out the kur.
"The results in Toledo were very good," the 20-year old Marta told Eurodressage. "They overcame my expectations as it has not been long since I purchased the mare and starting training her."
Winning the team test with 65.895% and the individual with 66.500%, Marta also finished third in the kur with 66.950%. She feels that she kept her standard at a high level throughout the entire three days of competition. "The highlight for me was our consistency. I felt that Arundensis kept a good rhythm throughout the Toledo competition."
Presented with two major challenges in Toledo, Marta aims to try and keep the average marks she had on her last international competition, the Sunshine Tour, and aspires even higher results. "Toledo offered me the chance to compete against two riders who have competed in the European championship as part of the Spanish national team for young riders," the ambitious Marta added.
A drop to third place in the kur, which Marta contributed to the fact that it was a new freestyle, was an opportunity to see whether the judges liked it or not. "Now that I know what the kur’s strengths and weaknesses are, I will adapt a new Kur to my mare’s strong dressage qualities," she stated.
Her 13-year old Westfalian mare Arundensis (by Fidermark I x Paterno), or Arunda for short, was previously competed by her trainer Jose Carlos Castillo Muñoz and is a very important and special horse for Marta because it taught her a lot about training and competing.
"She hasn’t only taught me a lot about dressage but also about horses in general: their personality, character, lifestyle and the connection they develop between horse and rider."
Arundensis already has a lot of experience and Marta knows she enjoys competition.
"When she steps into the arena she gives her all and proves to be an ambitious, perfectionist mare. She won the Spanish championship as a young horse and she competed in the World Championship in Verden in 2006. Her strengths are her focus on the competition, extended trot, flying changes, extended walk and pirouette in canter."
Compared by her friends and family to Beyonce, Arundensis is a ‘diva’, and she likes to be liked. "If she were able to speak she would say, “I know you know I’m the best!""
Trainining near Ronda, Malaga, Marta dreams of riding the great Sir Donnerhall one day and she feels that is why she decided to have a foal by him out of a Ferro dam "In terms of riders, I dream of riding like Monica Theodorescu with whom I trained and worked with for two years at her place in Germany."
Marta cherishes the values her mother has passed onto her. "My mother has fostered my dressage career as she was a former elite athlete herself, who achieved Spanish records." Currently studying marketing, commerce and publicity, Marta still hopes to make riding her profession in the future and hopes that her family will continue to support her dream. Marta also owns White Cedar, a 17 year-old, dapple grey Hanoverian (by Woodstock) as well as a youngster.
With a wish to become a member of the Spanish Team for the 2013 European Young Riders Championship, Marta has already got the necessary scores to do just that!. "I also want to go to the Spanish Championship and get a good ranking. I am aiming for the top five places."
Carmen Alanis Espigares In for a Fight
With a third and a second in the team and individual tests, Spanish team mate Carmen Alanis Espigares and her mount Espia climbed all the way to the top of the ranking in the kur, winning the class with a score of 68.300%.
"I felt that Espía was very correct," she told Eurodressage. "However, we did have some mistakes in the flying changes in the earlier tests. As we started in third place. To achieve the first in the freestyle section was definitely the highlight of the competition," she explained.
Feeling that the kur was appropriate for "Espía", Carmen says the design was very animated and it favored exercises the horse does well, like flying changes on the circle as well as the extended trot. "The music was composed by "dressage&music" and the choreography by my coach Claudio Castilla. I think it scored well because "Espía" is very regular and correct and the judges liked our music allot because it was very cheerful."
Starting out with Espía in the juniors' division Carmen is now in her last year of young riders and will miss the experience youth riders get in these preparatory divisions. Carmen owes much to Espial who is the special horse in her life.
"I have so much affection for him because we have lived in more beautiful than bad situations, and he is my perfect "man"," she said. "It was with him that I competed in the European Championships in Portugal and I feel that was truly the best moment."
Offering beautiful facilities and a good organization, the 2013 CDI Toledo was a very special show for Carmen. She feels that many riders missed out on some great prizes as there was a lack of foreign participation. "The weather was very cold, but at least it didn't rain," she joked.
Carmen was delighted to have the new Spanish national coach Nicky Barrett watching on and seeing all the tests. "Hopefully she will be my coach as I wish go to the European Championship," said the ambitious Carmen. " If I don't make it, I will just continue to enjoy my wonderful horse."
Text by Sarah Warne for Eurodressage
Photos © Rui Pedro Godinho
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