Who said dressage is boring? When it comes to a major continental championship, anything can happen and that was proven today when 2013 European Pony Champion had her pony SL Lucci too sharp on the aids and made mistakes. She immediately dropped out of medal contention while her team mate Alexandra Hellings, a rookie on the British team, shone brightly and took the overnight lead in the Individual Test at the 2014 European Pony Championships in Millstreet, Ireland, on Friday 1 August 2014.
Ireland's reputation of having a uni-season of rain showed its ugly head today, although in general one can't complain to much about the weather so far. Temperatures have been mild, the sky has always been heavily overcast and today a few riders were plagued by rain showers but most of the time it has been dry. So far...
Those who predicted individual medals beforehand have certainly lost their bet as the ranking after group 1 in the individual test turned out to be far from expected. The atypical performances of some riders, who seemed to have caved from the pressure, also affected the judges. The panel, which includes Victoire Mandl (AUT), Ulrike Nivelle (GER), Annette Fransen-Iacobaeus (SWE), Jo Graham (GBR), and Christoph Umbach, lost their sense of direction and they posted serious discrepancies.
They were in unison about Alexandra Hellings, though, who steered British junior rider Erin Williams' green 7-year old Der Kleine Lord (by Der Feine Lord) into the lead with 74.756%. Hellings rode the elegant bay with much feeling. The pony has much ground cover in trot, but lost the collection in the half pass right. The first bit of the collected walk could have been more regular in stride length, but the extended walk was active and energetic. The simple change on the serpentine was excellent but the volte left in canter lacked some bending. Hellings rode a very strong test and well earned those marks.
The judges were all over the place in their assessment of the second ranked pair so far, German Nadine Krause on the 11-year old palomino Danilo (by Dornik B). The gorgeous pony did pose a challenge to the panel. The experienced Danilo produced phenomenal, well carried, uphill canter work, a lovely extended walk and he had a nice energetic flow in the trot movements, but in all extended trots the pony was clearly irregular in the rhythm. Krause posted a total score of 73.951%, but Mandl had her at a 69.512% and Umbach at a whopping 78.049%. That's an almost 10% difference!
Dutch Demy Kurstjens had the ride of a life time on her small but chunky chestnut gelding Ciske (by Composer van de Beekerheide). The trot work showed excellent self carriage even though the pony lost some suppleness in the half pass right. The collected walk was too free but the extended walk was ridden to the pony's full potential even though he doesn't have the biggest reach. The canter work was uphill and accurate, but in the simple changes the pony could stride more. Kurstjens scored 73.439% with marks ranging from 69.512 (Mandl) to 77.073 (Fransen-Iacobaeus).
German Lea Luise Nehls and her drop dead gorgeous 8-year old De Long (by Daylight x Brillant) finished fourth with 72.854% (lowscore 70.732 - high score 76.707%). The bay is amongst the youngest ponies at the competition and it shows in his inability to sustain strong self carriage throughout the test, as he constantly drops behind the vertical and is soft but unsteady in the contact. Still, the pony is an excellent mover and Nehls rode nice canter work and kept her pony forward and expressive in trot. They scored 72.854% with marks ranging from 70.732% to 76.707%.
Dutch Febe van Zwambagt and her pretty 8-year old buckskin gelding Coco Jambo (by Champion de Luxe x Dressmann) completed the top five with a 72.415% earning test. Van Zwambagt had Coco nicely up in the bridle with the poll as highest point, but the pony slightly tilted the head in the shoulder in left. In the trot extensions the hind legs were slightly out, despite gaining good ground cover and lengthening of the frame. In the collected walk the pony was uneven in front, making short steps with the left front leg, and it lacked collection. The canter work was nicely ridden with much expression and confidence but in the simple changes the pony could have walked more. Van Zwambagt's marks ranged from 70.244% to 76.829%.
2013 Euro Champion Phoebe Peters and her German bred SL Lucci (by Lukas x Bazar) were second in the team championship test after riding the trot work without enough power. Peters travelled the ring with a different mission and her pony was sharp on the aids, forward and very expressive. The pair had gold on their mind and that was clearly visible in their presence. Unfortunately Lucci broke into canter after a stumble at the end of the centerline and Phoebe struggled to pick up the trot, missing two movements. It made her score drop into the twenty percent range. Unphased by this misfortune, Peters continued her ride with much concentration and Lucci was on the ball for the rest of the test. The canter work was super strong, the walk very meticulously ridden and in trot the pony was active, engaged from behind, and up in the bridle. If they can reproduce that ride without mistakes in the freestyle, the pair could certainly dig for gold in the Kur to Music. For their individual test they earned 72.171% with the judge at E having her on 68.293 (Mandl) and the judge at B at 75.976 (Umbach).
Something similar happened to German Maike Mende on the 8-year old mare Desert Rose (by Don't Worry). The chestnut mare is probably one of the most talented ponies at the European Championships, but she was cheeky and playful and not focused on the job. Desert Rose has beautiful front leg usage and is active from behind. She shows off her scope in the half passes and shoulders-in and can achieve much ground coverin the extensions, but she broke into canter in the extended trot, the collected walk was tense and took off in the extended canter, forcing her rider to make an emergency stop, twice (as she struck off in cross counter). Desert Rose is an incredibly gifted pony and we'll see much more of her in the future! The pair now scored 70.195% to finished 9th provisionally.
The Individual test continues on Saturday 2 August 2014 at 9 AM in the morning.
Text and Photos © Astrid Appels - NO REPRODUCTION ALLOWED
Related Link
Eurodressage Coverage of 2014 European Pony Championships
