-- BDE press release, edited by Eurodressage
-- Photos © Astrid Appels/Eurodressage - No reproduction allowed - NO SCREENSHOTS!
With 56 combinations in the small tour at the 2026 CDIO Lier, Belgian Suraya Hendrikx tamed a beast of a division of which the Prix St Georges and Intermediaire I each took two days to run. Riders from all over the world travelled to equestrian centre Azelhof with many Asian combinations using Lier as an important qualification opportunity for the upcoming Asian Games.
Small Tour Hattrick
In a field packed it was Suraya Hendrikx who managed to stand out day after day, claiming no less than three victories across the week with her horse, the 13-year old Hanoverian mare Benicia (by Benicio x St. Moritz).
“It has been a really nice week in Lier, although definitely a long one with such a big group of Small Tour combinations”, Suraya smiled on Sunday. “I really tried to keep my horse as fresh as possible throughout the week, and I think that worked out well. She felt really good in all three tests and I’m happy I managed to keep that consistency. Hopefully we can continue this line into next week.”
The pair posted a winning 71.118% in the Prix St Georges, 70.794% in the Intermediaire I and 73.755% in the Kur to Music. Originally, riding the freestyle was not even part of the plan.
“At first I didn’t really think I would ride the freestyle because of the long week”, she explains. “So I wasn’t completely prepared for it myself. But I have ridden this freestyle for a long time already, so I know exactly what to do. If I can improve one thing, it’s that I rushed a little bit through the corners. Next week I want to bring a bit more calm into the test.”
Family Mare
“She is such a lovely Small Tour horse and I will definitely keep her at this level. I don’t think she can physically handle Grand Prix. A few years ago she broke her splint bone, so honestly I’m already very grateful that I can still compete her successfully in the Small Tour.”
That long-time connection also makes the mare far too special to ever leave the stable. “She is absolutely not for sale”, Suraya says firmly. “And when she eventually retires from the sport, I would love to breed a foal from her.”
The Hendrikx family recently celebrated its first major breeding success with Avici ECH, the champion of the 2026 Belgian Warmblood stallion licensing
Belgian Pursuit
Hendrikx felt the most heat from her Belgian compatriots in the small tour. In the Prix St Georges it was Sally Jacobs on the 12-year old Oldenburg mare Monamie (by Dante Weltino x Sir Donnerhall) who was the runner-up with 70.382%. The dark bay mare is bred by Arendt Wieghaus-Vorwerk and has been trained by Jacobs from young horse level to FEI with the help of coaches Jeroen Devroe and Carmen De Bondt. A finance and performance consultant by profession, Sally is an amateur dressage rider and mother of two. She went on to finish sixth in the Inter I (68.235%) and Kur to Music (70.505%)
In the Intermediaire I Kur to Music it was Belgian Olympian Jorinde Verwimp and the Korean owned 11-year old KWPN-gelding Karnival Zee T (by Eye Catcher x Jazz) that finished second behind Hendrikx. Purchased by EJ Chin from Britt Gellens, the liver chestnut Karnival Zee T has been allocated to Verwimp and she rode him to a third place in the Prix St Georges (70.029%) and Inter I (69.324%%) and a second in the Kur with 72.995%
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