Vicky Smits' Daianira van de Helle Passed Away

Dressage

Belgium

Vicky Smits' career making international Grand Prix horse, Daianira van de Helle, has passed away. She was 24 years old.

Daianira van de Helle was a Hanoverian mare by Dream of Glory out of 2013 Hanoverian Mare of the Year Ria Grande (by Ritual x Grande). She was bred by Dorit Kothe in Germany and is a half sister to Damsey (Helen Langehanenberg).

Move to Belgium

Daianira was discovered in Germany by Belgian show jumping horse owner Paul Mais who indulged his wife, Edith de Reijs, by buying a dressage horse.

Mais later on sold shares in the ownership to Vicky's father Rudi Smits and a friend of the family, Mr. van Kerckhoven.

Matched to Vicky Smits

The 3-year old mare was matched to rider Vicky Smits, who had a highly successful youth riders career and then up to Grand Prix with her career starting horse, Illuster van den Vrijenakker.

She was seeking the next star to take her into the international Grand Prix ranks and Smits found a heart horse in Daianira. They built a unique relationship with the mare.

At the 2004 World Young Horse Championships in Verden, Smits and Dainira made an impact by finishing sixth in the finals, the second best placing ever achieved by a Belgian pair at the time (behind Stefan van Ingelgem on Saros van het Gestelhof (4th). At the 2005 World Young Horse Championships they were 13th in the Finals.

Belgian Sensation

The pair made the transition to Grand Prix level in 2009 at the CDI Hagen, but that start was quite rocky (60.596%). Three months later in Strassen the score rode to 67.000% and they gained miles ion Verden, Hansbeke and Oldenburg.

In 2010 they won the CDI Bremen Grand Prix Special with 71.500% and rode in Hamburg and Mechelen that year, although with mixed results.

Their break-out year was in 2011 when they won the CDI Bremen Grand Prix (70.447%) as well as the CDI Braunschweig Grand Prix (70.532%). It was a sensation for Belgian Dressage at the time and Smits was also a "trendsetter" of lightness on the international scene during a time when the heavy-handed style of the Dutch school was thriving internationally. Unfortunately an injury in the spring of 2011 kept them from team selection for the 2011 European Championships in Rotterdam.

They returned at the 2011 CDI-W Mechelen and 2012 and tried for an Olympic berth by competing at the CDI-W Amsterdam (67.468%), CDI Vidauban (69.851%); CDI Dortmund (69.830%), CDI Wiesbaden (69.426%), and CDIO Rotterdam (71.362%).

Olympic Dream Dashed

A legal dispute between the owners pulled the combination apart and the Olympic dream was dashed. The pair never competed again after their last CDIO Rotterdam start in June 2012. Vicky Smits completely disappeared from the international show scene since then, even though father Rudi is an active, small time breeder of dressage horses, supplying his daughter with his horses.

The dispute arose when co-owner Mais wanted to sell the mare after the sponsor of a famous Dutch team rider had shown big interest to buy her. The owners ended up in court and the mare was no longer allowed to compete during the legal proceedings.

In 2014 Daianira was retired from sport and Smits was legally forced to return the mare to Mais' stud farm, where she joined the breeding programme. Two foals came via embryotransfer: the 2015 born colt Pepito van de Helle (Quistallo van de Helle), the 2016 born colt Quartz van de Helle (by Glamourdale), and the 2017 born filly Roswita van de Helle (by Lissaro van de Helle).

Home Coming

The legal woes between the owners took five years to be resolved. In early 2017 the parties settled and the Smits family was able to buy the remaining ownership share from Mais for a reduced price.

The 18-year old Daianira van de Helle returned to Vicky Smits' stable in Belsele, Belgium, in the spring of 2017. Smits tried breeding with the mare and a first attempt was made with Negro, but didn't work out. A second try in 2018 worked out and in 2019 the colt Tamino (by Negro) was born.

Cushing

Daianira van de Helle was diagnosed with Cushing's disease, which made her infertile and it gradually developed into laminitis. All efforts were made to give her a good life but most recently it was no longer possible. On 6 May 2023 she was put to sleep.

"We tried everything to give her a comfortable life, but in the end we had to take the decision," Rudi Smits told Eurodressage.

Vicky runs her family's dressage stable De Gouden Leeuw in Belsele, Belgium, and still teaches numerous Belgian students who compete at national level.