Hans Peter Minderhoud, member of the gold medal team
It was a sight to be seen at the European Championships
today, as the Netherlands came away with the team gold, being just around a
percentage point above Great Britain that claimed the silver, and Germany that
claimed the bronze.
We were all on the edge of our seats watching as Charlotte
and Valegro rode. There is a reason they are top in the world, as they
navigated the test with such grace, balance, and power. Unfortunately the pair
has mistakes that effected the score, but still managed a well deserved 83%+ to
individually take the lead in the grand prix.
Promising was the
number of up-and-coming superstars. The class was loaded with 9 and 10 year-old
horses that typically were receiving scores in the low 70% and showed tons of
potential. It was fun to sit and watch what is up-and-coming.
With having Charlotte Bredahl (who is an FEI judge and
international competitor) as one of our mentors, we had the unique experience
to discuss how scores were given, what the judges were looking for, and we took
turns giving comments on the tests (look for a later post about this!). We all
agreed that the future of dressage is very exciting!
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