Katrin Burger's Salazar Retired from Sport

Dressage

Germany

Katrin Burger's number one Grand Prix horse Salazar has been retired from sport. The horse is 18 years old.

Salazar is an Oldenburg gelding by Sandro Hit out of Alabama (by Ex Libris). He is bred by Wolfgang Bschorer.

Burger and Salazar

Owned by Katrin Burger, the black gelding was trained by her from novice to Grand Prix level. He arrived in her barn as a 5-year old in 2008.

They made their show debut in Tubingen in the summer of 2008 and competed at the 2008 Bundeschampionate although the horse did not settle there and was excused from the test. They moved to S-level in 2010, to developing Grand Prix level in 2013.

The pair consistently competed at national Grand Prix level, mainly in South Germany, between 2014 and 2018. In 2017 they were Baden Wurttemberger regional champion. There was a year break from showing between 2018 and 2019 due to an injury, but in 2020 the pair returned and had its last national season at Grand Prix level. In October 2020 he carreer student Ann-Kathrin Lachemann into her first Inter 2 tests.

Burger and Salazar contested three international shows in their time together: the 2016 CDI Stuttgart, and the 2017 CDI's in Donaueschingen and Stuttgart, achieving scores in the mid sixties range.

"Every rider has a very special horse in their career and for us that is Salazar," Burger said, sharing opinions with her husband Joachim Neubert. "Always special, not easy at shows, prize givings and clapping was a no go. He is a personality to handle and in the stable, extraordinarily beautiful, and when everything worked out, very successful."

Piaffe in Spain

Burger credits Manolo Rodriguez and Karin Hess-Müller for helping her reach Grand Prix level. She had to send Salazar to Arcis de la Frontera in Spain for him to learn the piaffe.

"We sent him to Manolo Rodriguez," Burger told eurodressage. "It was the time I was working for the Oldenburg association and didn‘t have much time for riding. He was not that easy learning piaffe, so I was very happy to get help and Manolo did an amazing Job, I don‘t think Salazar would have made it to Grand Prix without him."

Quiet Retirement

Burger gave Salazar a quiet send-off into retirement this summer.

"Because he doesn't like a lot of pooha, we didn't do an official retirement, but slowly we got the 18-year old Salazar accustomed to a life in the field," Burger added. He will enjoy his retirement at the yard of the Eberhardt family," she stated.