Honnerups Driver Returns on Danish U25 Team after Eye Surgery

Dressage

Denmark

Next week the 2021 European Under 25 Championships will take place in Hagen, Germany. Long-time U25 team member Josefine Hoffmann and Honnerups Driver have been a long-time fixture on the team but this year it wasn't certain that they were good to go.

Eye Injury

In June, the 17-year old Danish warmblood gelding by Romanov x Don Schufro, had an unfortunate stable accident. He spooked while standing in cross ties and the metal clip of the carabiner hit his eye.

"Driver was first seen by a veterinarian, who later instucted us to drive him to Højgaard Horse Hospital, which sent us to a specialist at an equine hospital in Hamburg. Two hours after we dropped him off in Hamburg, they had operated on him because it was so serious. It is the front part of the eye that is damaged, so he now has a reduced vision in the left eye," Hoffmann told Ridehesten.

The veterinarians wanted to keep Driver under observation and the horse has stayed in Hamburg until last week, first in the clinic and then at a private barn. The past few weeks Josefine has been commuting 2 - 3 times a week back and forth to train him.

"Fortunately, Driver does not notice that he has reduced vision in one eye," Josefine explained to Ridehesten. "He is fresh, hardworking and in a good mood. But of course you can see that he lacks muscle and agility after standing still, and he is not 100% where I would like him."

Paying it Forward

As an assistant trainer to owner Anna Kasprzak, Hoffmann received the ride on the 2009 World Young Horse Champion Honnerups Driver in 2017 after the gelding recovered from an injury. It was decided that the horse was too sensitive to cope with a top level Grand Prix environment and he was moved down to young riders' level with Hoffmann.

The pair made it on the Danish team and competed at the 2017 European YR Championships in Roosendaal.

In 2019 they moved up to Under 25 Grand Prix level and represented Denmark at the 2019 and 2020 European U25 Championships. This will be their fourth team representation, their third time at Under 25 level.

This year Hoffmann and Driver competed at the CDI Sint-Truiden in April, where they won all three U25 tests with scores over 70 percent. At the Danish training camp on 30 - 31 August 2021 to prepare for the Europeans, the horse showed sufficient show fitness to compete in Hagen.

The German ophthalmologists and Danish veterinarians have followed Driver closely in this period. The veterinarian who operated on Driver will also be present at the European Championships in Hagen.