Quinn G Leads Chestnut Charge to Win Gold at 2023 World Young Horse Championships

Not the big fancy, oversized, overpriced, and overhyped breeding stallions dominated the 5-year old finals of the 2023 World Championships for young dressage horses, but the fabulously moving mare Quinn G led the chestnut charge and danced to gold and the world title in Ermelo (NED) on Saturday 5 August 2023.

Three chestnuts captured the top three places in the highly competitive 5-year old final for which 15 horses qualified. Eight of them are owned/managed by Helgstrand Dressage and while the Danish horse dealer and stallion owner mogul captured his first gold medal of the weekend with mare (!) Quinn G, the other two podium places were for independently owned horses. The highest ranked breeding stallion was the privately owned Swedish stallion Skyline to B in fourth place.

Quinn Quinn

Not "chin chin" but Quinn Quinn! Cheers to such a wonderful dressage horse! After impressing the crowds and judges in the preliminary round with a third place on Thursday, Danish Betina Jaeger and the Danish warmblood mare Quinn G (by Quaterhit x Fassbinder x Lauries Crusador xx) upped the ante in the finals and produced an untouchable round that was so dominant, expressive and well ridden, there was no doubt about it that they were the world champions. 

Bred by Helene Geervliet at Stutteri G, the chestnut ballerina Quinn G delivered an awe-inspiring test. The trot made you drool: so active, expressive, balanced, cadenced. She grew in the medium trot. Even though she has a light paddle in front, she never failed to impress. She displayed outstanding rideability and temperament, was straight as a candle in the lengthenings and counter canter and showed very clear walk. A small mistake crept into the test at the end when she picked up the wrong lead in the simple change, but Jaeger corrected that easily.

Judges Susanne Baarup, Ulrike Nivelle, Dr. Jean-Michel Roudier, Peter Storr were equally impressed and rewarded her with 8.5 for walk, 9.7 for trot, 9.5 for canter, 9.7 (rather high due to that one mistake) for submission, and 10 for perspective. This totalled 9.48 points and a well earned victory. Judge Ulrike Nivelle provided the public commentary and said, "that must have been a really nice feeling to ride" praising the mare for her "lightfooted, elastic" way of moving, adding that she is "by nature, an easygoing and willing horse. She has enormous potential.”

The 49-year old Jaeger was beaming with pride. “I don’t know how I feel, I only think: Wow! After the third place in the qualification on Thursday we practiced our transitions, and I was so eager to show off her qualities here. We succeeded.” Jaeger last rode in Ermelo in 2019 when she brought two horses: Bonderman (sold to Signe Kirk Kristiansen) and Skovens Tzarina (now with Isabell Werth). When asked about the best features of this mare, Betina replied, "she is such a happy horse that always wants to work for me, with her ears pointed forward. As soon as she sets foot in the arena she is on fire and gives it her all.”

Located in Lynge (DEN), Stutteri G was founded in 2014 by Helene Geervliet who started as a hobby breeder in 2005. Helene grew up around horses with her parents managing Stutteri Skovgaard in Farum (DEN), where they bred Danish warmblood horses and New Forrest ponies. After retiring from her professional career as a civil engineer, Geervliet combined her passion and expertise and began dressage horse breeding. In 2021 Geervliet's mare family was invited to participate in the highly prestigious "Herwart von der Decken" division at the annual Hanoverian Elite Mare show in Verden.

Quinn G was born in 2018 and is the first foal out of Fyrstn Laura. After winning the bronze medal under Anders Sjobeck Hoeck in the 4-year old finals of the Danish Young Horse Championships in October 2022, Quinn G sold to Danish youth team trainer Dennis Fisker who shortly afterwards sold the mare to Helgstrand. 

"She was a nice foal, but not extraordinary," Helene admitted. "Her qualities emerged when she started her training under saddle. As it turns out, she is a true competition horse. She has a lovely temperament and always says ‘yes’ to her rider. And now gold, it’s the best feeling imaginable as a breeder.”

No Limit Strides to Silver

German based Australian Simone Pearce navigated her temperamental red-head No Limit (by Geniaal x Florestan) to the silver medal on a score of 8.86 points. 

The mega talented chestnut gelding has a yummy trot, lots of shoulder freedom, an engaged hindleg, always uphill oriented, but at times lacking some bending in the turns and corners. Pearce had to work hard to keep the horse through, soft and elastic in the bridle. The medium trot was clearly an extended trot, huge in ground cover and launched like a rocket. The walk marched clearly through the body, the canter was strong, powerful and uphill. Also with No Limit there was a mistake in the second simple change as he made a wrong strike off. When given the rein in the trot, he could have stretched the nose more out. 

The judges rewarded the horse with 8.8 for walk, 9.5 for trot, 9 for canter, 7.8 for submission and 9.2 for perspective.  “No Limit is an incredible horse with a lot of perspective," said judge Ulrike Nivelle “He has a huge, elastic trot and is well-balanced and uphill in the canter. When it comes to the submission he needed to be more open in the frame and tilted at times."

No Limit is bred by accountant and car dealer Marcel Roerdink, who sold the colt as a foal to his client and adviser Eugene Reesink. He is out of state premium mare Florina (by Florestan x Donnerhall). He was competed in The Netherlands by Charissa Buurmeijer and in the spring of 2023 offered for sale in the Excellent Dressage Sales but seemingly did not meet the reserve price as Reesink retained ownership.

The renowned Dutch horse dealer suggested the horse to Simone Pearce, who had just moved to new sponsors, Monika and Thomas Ritzinger, in Bavaria. She received the ride and immediately qualified him for Ermelo at the CDI Samorin, which prompted the Ritzinger couple to purchase the gelding. 

“Six weeks ago, No Limits could not even perform this test, so I am incredibly proud of him," said Pearce overwhelmed by emotion. “Everything is new to him and for us as a team, so it is amazing he tried his heart out here.” Breeder Marcel Roerdink chimed in and expressed equal admiration for the chestnut: “I love chestnuts, so I was immediately fond of this foal when he was born. No Limit was bred out of a famous dam line and a very talented mare. He takes after his dam; she is also a special one. This is fantastic, it’s the dream of any breeder.”

Beck's Got Bronze

The biggest surprise to be read on someone's face was that of German Thomas Schulze, a WCYH first-timer. Aboard Christian Thelker's home bred Hanoverian gelding Beck's (by Benicio x Desperados) the combination defied the odds and landed third place with 8.82 points. 

The chestnut gelding is a very round, dynamic mover with a good hindleg and knee action. The trot work was cadenced but in the medium trot there was a loss of rhythm. The medium walk was well executed but the horse lost some activity in the turn on the haunches. In canter, the obedient horse worked well for his rider but lost some uphill tendency in the counter canter and got slightly tense in the medium canter. The horse stood out with his willingness to work, very steady and soft contact in the bridle, but there were a few details that could have been polished more. 

The judges' panel was very forgiving for that and rewarded the Hanoverian with 8.8 for walk, 9.0 for trot, 8.5 for canter, 8.8 for submission and 9 for perspective. They praised the horse for being "very active from behind, nice and balanced; the canter had "ground cover" even though he got "high in the croup in counter canter". They lauded the horse for its "nice frame and willingness to collect."

Ermelo debutant Thomas Schulze grinned from ear to ear. "Beck’s is my biggest friend and wants to do everything for me. After his test on Thursday, I noticed he was impressed by the surroundings and even a bit tired, so we only did some light training to save his energy for the final. It worked out perfectly”

Breeder Thelker was equally thrilled. “I have believed in this horse since day one. Thomas and Beck’s are a perfect match. This was a WC-debut for rider, horse and for me as a breeder. An experience I will never forget!”

Disappointed

The biggest disappointment to be read on a rider's face was that on Danish Anne-Mette Strandby Hansen, who after winning the preliminary test on Thursday had tasted victory on her lips and visibly expected to get gold if she produced a fault-free ride. Strandby, who is the 2020 European Under 25 kur gold medalist and 2021 WCYH bronze medal winner (on Eternity) delivered and rode an immaculate test on the Danish warmblood mare Valerie B (by Revolution x Zack) yet landed fourth place with 8.80 points. 

The bay mare showed off her three very high quality with an active, engaged trot which was not as straight and cadenced as on Thursday. There could also have been a bit more flexion on the right lead. The medium trot was a highlight. The walk before the turn on the haunches became lateral, but the medium walk was well ridden with good ground cover. The medium canter stayed a bit horizontal and in the right counter canter she leaned on the shoulders, even though the mare was attentive and working hard for her rider. She showed good simple changes and was very obedient. When given the reins in trot, the nose should have come out a fraction more. 

The judges scored the horse 8 for walk, 9.3 for trot, 9 for canter, 8.7 for submission and 9 for submission, stating that there should have been "more self carriage during the whole test." 

Valerie B, who was the 2021 Danish Warmblood mare of the year and the 2022 Danish young horse champion, could easily have been a bronze medal winner thanks to her immaculate test, but the judges decided in favour of Beck's. Valerie B is bred by bred Karin & Peer Gudbrandsen and owned by Helgstrand. 

Excitement

Swedish Carl Hedin had maybe dreamt of medal glory, but he also finished in fourth place aboard his towering Swedish warmblood stallion Skyline to B (by St. Schufro x Ampere), bred by Maria Rasmusson. 

The tall black stallion did not stand immobile, but then went on to produce a very stable trot tour, even though at times the hindlegs became a bit slow and moved out from the under the body. He hurried in the medium trot despite the good ground cover. The medium walk showed good relaxation but could have marched even more. There were big uphill strides and outstanding ground cover in canter and overall the horse was beautifully presented with a quiet and soft contact. 

The judges rewarded the horse with 9 for walk and canter, 8.5 for trot and submission and 9 for perspective to score an average of 8.80 points. They liked to have seen "the hindlegs more under" and praised the canter for its "nice airtime, balance and energy."

Quartet

A quartet of Helgstrand horses followed in place six to nine. 

Danish Mette Sejbjerg Jensen placed second in the consolation finals on the ZfDP stallion About You II (by AC-DC x Estobar) and ended up 6th in the finals with 8.58 points. The bay stallion is a very active, energetic horse, lofty in trot and with lots of knee action, but he was chased forward with a high neck. He knocked himself in the turn on the haunches, struggled in the second simple change and lacked balance in the left counter canter, but showed good quality of walk in the first simple change and medium walk. The contact could have been softer. He got 8.5 for walk, 9.2 for trot, 8.2 for canter, and 8.5 for submission (?) and perspective. 

Danish Michael Grönne Christensen and the big bay Grevens Sirius (by Secret x Johnson) tied in sixth place with 8.58 points. He showed a super cadenced trot with a functional hindleg but was unsteady in the walk and the simple changes were not so fluentL The counter canter left was clearly better than the right one, but the medium canter was powerful and off the ground. Sirius got 7.8 for walk, 8.5 for trot, 9 for canter, and 8.8 for submission and perspective. 

German Maxi Kira von Platen and the Italian bred Hanoverian Happy Days di Fonteabeti (by Valverde x Wup) finished 8th with 8.42 points. The rather round moving, sympathetic gelding received 8.2 for walk, 8.5 for trot, 8.4 for canter and 8.5 for submission and perspective. 

Danish Maria Anita Andersen and Oldenburg mare Rosee de Fontaine (by Revolution x Desperados) placed 9th with 8.34 points. Bred by Bolette Wandt of Chateau de Fontaine in France and owned by Helgstrand in partnership with Dutch entrepreneur Jan Anker (co-owner of Dinja van Liere's Hermes), the lanky dark bay mare Rosee was very forward and big moving in trot, but struggled with the collection/shortening of the steps at this points in her dressage career. Her rider was constantly spurring her forward with her heels, especially in trot, which resulted in the mare showing much scope and ground cover in her gaits, but she looked quite green overall. She scored 8.2 for walk, 8.7 for trot, 8.3 for canter, 8.0 for submission and 8.5 for general impression.  

- Text and Photos © Eurodressage (this article expresses Eurodressage's' eye-witness account and opinion about the competition).

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