At the international CDIO in Saumur, France, British Olympian Emma Hindle bagged a double victory and a second place in the small tour aboard her Oldenburg stallion Diamond Hit.
With her Olympic partner Wie Weltmeyer she placed fourth twice in the big tour, achieving 71.950% in the Kur to Music.
With twenty-eight riders in the running for the trophy, Hindle faced tough competition in the small tour. In spite of that, her 8-year old licensed breeding stallion Diamond Hit (by Don Schufro x Ramino) was up to the task and the pair outclassed all with a 68.850% earning Prix St Georges ride. In the Intermediaire I they reigned again with 67.350%. For the Kur to Music, Hindle borrowed Sarah Millis’ musical freestyle and with much improvisation and good riding skills she steered her stud to a 70.550% score. They place second in the kur and were only 0.225% adrift from the winning mark of 70.775% attained by Belgian Sophie Baetens-van Lent on the Hanoverian mare Dark Diamant.
“I’m very happy with him [Diamond Hit]. It was only his second competition at Prix St Georges level, so I’m very satisfied,” Hindle said.
In the CDIO big tour, Hindle proved to be the anchor for the British team by being the top ranking Brit in fourth place in the Grand Prix. The Hanoverian licensed stallion Wie Weltmeyer (by Weltmeyer x Dynamo) moved with more expression and power than ever and scored 68.875%. The British team was 30 points short of a bronze medal in the nations’ cup in Saumur.
Laura Bechtolsheimer scored 65.417% (17th) on Douglas Dorsey, Jane Bredin 64.000% (22nd) with Lucky Star and Henriette Anderson got 62.792% (26th) with Astonish, totalling 4759 points with the team. In the Kur to Music, Hindle notched 71.950% with her “Earth, Wind & Fire” freestyle and placed fourth, while the class was won by the Russian Alexandra Korelova on Balagur.
For Hindle and Wie Weltmeyer the season kicked off well in sunny Saumur, especially because her horse exceeded her expectations being in such great form. “Wally” made his first show ring appearance since the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, where he injured himself by pulling a muscle in the front leg.
Hindle got the chestnut stallion completely fit again giving him a long break and the dynamic duo only lacked some fine-tuning in their rides in order to ace the leader board. “He was really fresh,” Hindle commented. “I just need to come out and ride him again, so that we build up routine.”
The suppleness with which Hindle’s horses moved in Saumur was remarkable. Both Diamond Hit and Wie Weltmeyer bounced off the ground striding with confidence. The secret to this power and rhythm in her horses is the fact that they wear no shoes. “The experiences I’ve had riding without shoes is unbelievable,” Hindle explained. “Three years ago Wally had a problem after one shoeing, so we wanted to see how he did without them. Since then, we’ve taken off for three months in winter and put them back on for the shows. This year we decided to keep them off and I think it’s brilliant.” Praising her farrier Erwin Zimmermann for doing a superb job trimming her horses’ hooves, Hindle claimed that a horse moves best without shoes. “Like everyone else I thought a horse needed shoes, but they aren’t born with shoes on,” she joked.
Based at Brookhouse Stud in Ehrbach, Germany, Hindle has been training with German Jurgen Koschel for the past two years. “He really improved my riding by working on the Grand Prix movements and by making me concentrate in the arena. He taught me not to focus on the wrong things that happen, but to focus on my mind and ride a good test.”
Hindle has five international shows coming up on her 2005 show schedule at which she will compete Diamond Hit, Lancet, Lillemarkens Arkibald and Wie Weltmeyer. Her goal for this year is to qualify for the British team for the 2005 European Championships in Moscow. “I will try to qualify, but my biggest hope is that all horses stay fit and healthy at the moment. I am as ambitious as anyone else. I want to get better at shows and I’ll go from there,” Hindle said.
Text and Photos by Astrid Appels - No Reproduction without permission