A wave of Spanish Olympic fever hit the show grounds of the 2021 CDI Grote Brogel last weekend (1 - 4 July 2021) as all short listed Spanish riders for their Olympic team rode in their final team selection trial in Belgium.
Spanish Olympic Selection Trial
Spanish team trainer Rudolf Zeilinger (GER) and the technical staff of the Spanish equestrian federation ordered all nine short listed riders with their 10 horses to travel to Belgium for a final ride-off. The first big selection moment had already taken place at the Spanish National Dressage Championships on 3-6 of June 2021 in Oliva Nova, Spain.
The big trip from Spain to Belgium was deliberate as the team would be announced at the end of the show and the selected combinations could travel straight to Aachen, Germany for quarantine.
The July edition of the 2021 CDI Grote Brogel was not the biggest with most youth riders preparing for the European Youth Championships in Oliva Nova the week after, but the big tour drew a particularly large and interesting field of up and coming, new combinations as well as the Spanish armada.
Edge of the Knife
The third and last team spot for Tokyo was highly contested between Severo Jurado Lopez, a Rio 2016 Olympic team rider, on his new ride of one year, Gert-Jan Van Olst's 11-year old Dutch warmblood Fendi T (by Negro x Lester) and Jose Antonio Garcia Mena, who last rode on the team at the 2015 European Championships with Norte Lovera.
Mena needed a few years to build up a new horse base, but this year he came back full power with two top Grand Prix horses: Madeleine Winter-Schulze's loan horse Sorento, a 14-year old Westfalian by Sandro Bedro x Florestan) that has been improving from show to show, and his literal "dark horse", the 11-year old chestnut Hanoverian mare Divina Royal (by Desperados). The mare was first ridden by Carlos Nieto before Mena took over four years ago and rode her to the silver medal at the 2018 Spanish Developing Prix St Georges Championship. She made her national Grand prix debut in February 2020.
Mena vs Jurado
Zeilinger did not bring any clarity for two riders as he refrained from naming the actual third place-getter and travelling reserve. This duel between Severo and Jose has been delayed to the Aachen quarantine where the team trainer will make his final decision. The question now seems to be: which combination can develop the most over the next two weeks in training camp before the flight to Tokyo? Which horse will be able to cope with the pressure and heat in Tokyo the most? Which pair will get the highest scores from the judges and (in principle) reflect the standards of classical dressage best: Fendi T, Sorento or Divina Royal? All will be revealed.
Text and Photos © Astrid Appels - NO REPRODUCTION ALLOWED
Eurodressage was on the scene at the 2021 CDI Grote Brogel and photographed all riders from ponies to Grand Prix. If you are interested in prints or photos for social media, send us an email with your name.
Related Links
Scores: 2021 CDI Grote Brogel
Spanish Federation Nominates Four Olympic Dressage Riders, No Clear Team Definition
Spanish Olympic Short List Riders for Tokyo To go Head to Head at 2021 CDI Grote Brogel
Eurodressage Coverage of the 2021 Olympic Games
