Dressage In the Spotlight at 2025 Belgian Equigala

Dressage

Belgium

Belgian dressage took the spotlight at the 2025 Equigala, the annual Riders Ball organised by the Belgian Equestrian Federation.

Held at Dome Docks in Brussels on 20 January 2025, the gala featured an award ceremony to celebrate the athletes for outstanding performances in the previous competition year.

The Belgian Dressage Team was named "Team of the Year" after placing in a historic fifth spot at the Paris Olympics. Domien Michiels' Belgian warmblood horse Intermezzo van het Meerdaalhof was named Horse of the Year, while para athlete Michele George won the award for Performance of the Year.

For Flore de Winne, who was not nominated for any award although she was the best scoring dressage rider at the Olympics, the Belgian equestrian federation conjured up a last minute "category" as a consolation prize, called "Special Jury Prize". They also recognized driver Dries Degrieck in this way.

Photo © Dirk Caremans

The nominations for the awards are:

Winners are in bold.

Athlete of the Year:

Larissa Pauluis (Dressage) - Winner CDI5* Freestyle Crozet and second at the CDI-W GP Neumünster.
Lara de Liedekerke (Eventing) - Winner of 5* Luhmühlen and 2nd in the FEI rankings.
Gilles Thomas (Jumping) - Winner GP Longines Global Champions Tour Shanghai, 3rd GP CSI5* Madrid, 2nd GP CSI5* Cannes, CSIO5* Rotterdam clear and 4th with the team.

Team of the Year:

Team Dressage Olympics Paris - 5th place.
Team Jumping YR - Bronze medal at the European Championship Jumping Kronenberg and 1st place in the Nations Cup Final Youth Lier.
Team Driving H4 - Multiple bronze team medals at international competitions (Windsor, Aachen, Kladruby, Exloo) and silver in Saumur.

Horse of the Year:

Intermezzo vh Meerdaalhof (Dressage) - Winner World Cup Gothenburg, 5th with the Team in Paris.
Hooney d'Arville (Eventing) - Winner 5* Luhmühlen.
Best of 8 (Para-Dressage) - Double gold with Michèle George at the Paralympic Games.
Toupie de la Roque (Jumping) - Winner Basel World Cup.
Bond Jamesbond de Hay (Jumping) - Winner World Cup Oslo.

Performance of the Year:

Dries Degrieck (Driving) - Winner World Cup Leipzig.
Domien Michiels (Dressage) - Winner World Cup Gothenburg.
Lara de Liedekerke (Eventing) - Winner CCI5* Luhmühlen.
Michèle George (Para-Dressage) - Double gold at the Paralympic Games in Paris.

Rookie of the Year:

Mathieu Bourdeaud'hui (Jumping) - European bronze in team at the European Jumping YR, silver at the World Young Horse Championships in Lanaken, and team winner at the CSIO YR in Opglabbeek.
Jette De Jong (Dressage) - 1st place in Freestyle YR Aachen and 11th in the FEI rankings.
Evelyne Putters (Jumping) - European team bronze, two GP YR wins, and a GP 2* victory.