Anke Simon Calls It Quits, Ends Professional Riding Career

Dressage

Germany

German dressage rider Anke Simon has called it quits and stops relying on riding for her bread and butter. She decided to gain her income as a real estate agent and only ride for fun.

Reiterjournal posted the particularly frank article and interview in which Simon speaks of "intrigue, envy and resentment" in the professional horse world, coming from certain horse owners as well as "so called colleagues."

"I no longer want to be dependent on this job to make a living," a disgruntled Simon told Reiterjournal. "Horses remain my passion and elixir to life, but I will no longer bend myself backwards for someone."

The 34-year old Simon is the 2018 South German professional dressage rider's champion. After riding at several stables in the North of Germany in the 2010s, she went back to home turf in the south of Germany. From 2017 till 2019 she worked as head rider at Von Staff-Reitzenstein's equestrian center Oberbiegelhof in Bad Rappenau. In February 2019 she moved to the Schneider-Bader yard, where she filled in for the pregnant Christiane Bader.

Most recently Simon was training horses at stable Feenhügel in Ostelheim. Her last competition start dates back to June 2019 in Ilsfeld, where she showed Seoul S (by Sezuan x Sunny Boy), Fromecs Sezini (by Sezuan x Sandro Hit) and Brunetta (by Benetton Dream x Sandro Hit) at a regional show.