Fanny Verliefden's Annarico Passed Away

Dressage

Belgium

Fanny Verliefden had to say goodbye to her career making horse Annarico on Saturday 5 June. The 16-year old Dutch warmblood mare was put to sleep.

Annarico was a KWPN mare by Lord Loxley out of Odessa (by Havel). She was bred by the Tissen-Schoonenberg family in The Netherlands.

Career Maker

Fanny's youth riders career started with horses Rubel and Fanita, but it was Annarico that brought her the first major successes in the senior Grand Prix ring.

Fanny discovered Annarico at the former trainer Wim Verwimp's barn, where she was brought to with major training issues from her Dutch start. Fanny tried her, fell in love and purchased the mare. She trained her to Grand Prix.

“Annarico arrived at the stable of Dressuurstal Verwimp in Wiekevorst when she was 6 years old, just over 4 years ago,” Fanny told Eurodressage in 2015. “Her owners / breeders at that time had the intention to sell her and the first time I rode her I immediately fell in love with her, I was mesmorized!”

The pair first competed nationally as of 2012, winning the Flanders Silver Cup at S-level at the 2012 Belgian Dressage Championships.

In 2013 they made their international show debut at small tour level at the CDI Vestfold in Norway. Three months later they went to Saumur and won the Intermediaire one. Two weeks later in Compiegne they posted two top four scores.

They made the transition to international Grand Prix level at the CDI Roosendaal Indoor in December 2014.

Personal and Belgian Bests

Verliefden and Annarico had a great season in 2015 with scores climbing with each start, breaking barriers for Belgian dressage sport.

They schowed in Drachten, 's Hertogenbosch, Nieuw en St. Joosland, Roosendaal, Aachen, and Rrotterdam to be nominated on the Belgian team for the 2015 European Dressage Championships in Aachen, where they placed 38th in the Grand Prix with 69.200, one of the lowest GP scores they had that season. They completed 2015 with indoor starts in Roosendaal and London Olympia.

In 2016 they were in the running for Belgium's Olympic individual spot for Rio de Janeiro. They competed in Amsterdam, where they set an all-time Belgian record score, and in Lier, where they set their personal best score in the freestyle to 79.700%, before achieving their career GP highlight score of 74.100% at the CDI-W 's Hertogenbosch in March 2016.

This turned out to be the horse's last competition.

Injury

Annarico injured herself shortly after Den Bosch and their Olympic dream went up in smoke.

The wonderfully talented mare never made a return to the show arena despite veterinary efforts. She was turned into a broodmare and produced her first foal in 2020, a filly by Fanny's GP stallion Indoctro van de Steenblok (by Rubin Royal x Gribaldi).

Early Demise

Annarico was euthanized on 5 June 2021 as her declining health prevented her from having a further comfortable life

"It is difficult to find the words because there are no words to describe how much she means to me, how empty I feel now, how much I love her and how much I miss her," said Verliefden. "She fought so hard but the pain was too much to bear. It’s with a broken heart that I had to take the hardest decision of my life. But today, I feel calm inside to know that she has no more pain!"

Verliefden is full of praise for her career making horse.

"I had the chance to know the most amazing & talented horse. So special & so unique. Truly one of a kind. It was my absolute privilege to ride you. I feel lucky & blessed our paths have crossed. Thanks for giving me the chance to love you. You are my once in a lifetime horse I will keep our memories in my heart like a very precious treasure. You were taken from me way too early but I will stay forever grateful for the amazing journey we did together. I enjoyed every single moment by your side Hard to accept that I will never see nor hold you anymore. I feel so lost without you. Far from my eyes, but close here in my heart."