Domien Michiels Returns in Mechelen after Injury, Looks Back on Inspiring Year for Belgian Dressage

Interviews

Belgium

Belgian Olympic Team rider Domien Michiels will be competing in his first show since Paris following a shoulder injury that sidelined him.

Michiels and Marc Steeno's 16-year old Belgian warmblood Intermezzo van het Meerdaalhof (by Gribaldi x Balzflug) had a stellar season in 2024. Domien made history in February by becoming the first Belgian ever to win a World Cup qualifier. He did so in Gothenburg. At the Paris Olympics he rode two personal best scores and assisted his team riders to finish in a historic fifth place for Belgium at the Olympic Games.

Sidelined

In the late summer Michiels got sidelined due to an injury.

"A few months ago, I broke my shoulder falling down the stairs," he said. "It was a real challenge to get both myself and Intermezzo ready in time for Mechelen. This will be our first competition since Paris, so it has been quite a while. Intermezzo has had enough of our break by now. He’s a true competitor and is eager to get back into the ring. For months now, he’s been giving me questioning looks in the stable, wondering why we’re not loading up the truck to head to a competition.”

One of the BWP Greats

Flying high in Versailles at the Olympics

The Belgian warmblood bred Intermezzo van het Meerdaalhof became the second ever BWP horse to win a World Cup qualifier. He succeeds Nector van het Carelshof who with Ingrid Klimke won the 2002 World Cup qualifiers in both Berlin and Stuttgart.

Michiels is thrilled that Intermezzo has joined this very select group of BWP horses to stand out internationally. Belgian warmblood horse breeding is mainly focused on breeding show jumping horses.

"It truly moves me to see how happy he makes his breeders," said Domien, who has been competing Intermezzo for nine years on the international dressage scene, starting at small tour level in April 2016 before moving to Grand Prix level in the summer of 2018.

Domien is the first Belgian to ever win a World Cup qualifier.

Inspiration

The recent successes of the Belgian Grand Prix riders have been an inspiration to many ambitious riders.

Winning the World Cup Qualifier in Gothenburg

"As modest Belgians, we often think we can’t achieve great heights with our horses or with a less flashy young horse, but that’s not true," said the professional rider. "By training your horse well and believing in yourself through all the ups and downs, so much is possible. I sometimes hear from other dressage riders that our story inspires them to pursue their big sport dreams. Some even say it motivated them to ride Grand Prix. For me, that’s the greatest reward for our work."

He continued, “we also see more and more Belgians competing at the Grand Prix level, a step many talented riders hesitated to take in the past. That could really give Belgian dressage a significant boost in the coming years."

Through the System

The 41-year old Michiels came "through the system".

His first international experience was gained as a junior rider in 2000 aboard Narengo 't Hof Ter Bist (BWP, by Raimond x Drost) with whom he moved into the young riders division. In 2005 new horse Acapulco (HANN, by Argument x Acapulco) came along.

His collection of horses to ride slowly grew with names such as Tresario (KWPN, by Obelisk x Dorito), Rubinrot (OLD, by Royal Diamond x ), Champion of Art (BWP, by Weltart x Wendekreis), Kokoschka van de Burggrave (BWP, by Rubiquil x Krack C), and Bling Bling (KWPN, by Tango x Eklatant), amongst others.

Then Intermezzo came along, which he debuted at M-level in the spring of 2015. The black became Domien's first Grand Prix horse. The pair rode on team Belgium at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics (21st in the GP with 70.202%), the 2021 European Championships (64th in the GP, 64.115%), the 2022 World Championships (44th in the GP, 69.596%), the 2023 European Championships (43rd in the GP, 69.068%) and the 2024 Olympics (22nd in the GP, 72.531% and 17th in the GPS with 72.386%).

Domien has Marc Steeno's grey BWP stallion Panthero van de Vogelzang (BWP, by Belantis x Quarterback) in the wings as the successor. He trains with his long-time coach Carmen de Bondt and his life partner, Dutch Grand Prix rider Geert-Jan Raateland, as extra eyes on the ground.

Collaboration

When asked what the secret is to Belgium's sudden success Domien replied "collaboration".

He said, “It’s a combination of many factors. Everything has to align: we had great horses, etc. but the key for me is collaboration. A few years ago, the federation set up a strong training program. Within that framework, top riders regularly came together to train. We got to know each other better and became supporters of one another instead of rivals."

He further explained, "we realized that individually we might not always reach the highest peaks, but as a team, we could achieve that ambition. We rode with each other instead of against each other. That brought us not only the fifth-place finish as a team in Paris but also improved us individually. I scored 2% higher there than ever before. That was the best feeling I’ve ever had. It felt like I had won gold: together with the team and surrounded by so many loud Belgian supporters… I can’t wait to see them again in Mechelen.”

Related Links