What's Happening: January 2008 - Part 1

Thu, 01/10/2008 - 00:00
What's Happening in the Dressage World?
Emma Hindle on Lancet

2007 ended unpleasantly for Emma Hindle with a fracture in her hand. During some work in-hand her top stallion Lancet kicked with his hind legs and hit the hands of the British Nation cup rider. “Thank God I reacted fast enough otherwise it might have been my head!” Emma said after the accident. Her doctors will decide if she participate in the stallion shows in Gahlen and Verden. Emma: “I’ll do my best to come as announced, but I can’t make any promises.” If her health will allow it she’ll saddle Star Diamond Hit for the stallion show at Gahlen.

December 2007 saw British equestrian photographer Kevin Sparrow tie the knot with Jane Brewin, owner of the successful advanced dressage horse Nadonna. Congratulations!

Anky van Grunsven celebrated her 40th birthday on January 2, 2008. 

The 4-year old black Hanoverian licensed stallion Delatio has been sold to Dressage Stable Rongen and Dutch company Decor Son in The Netherlands. Delatio is by De Niro out of St. Pr. St. Rubina (by Rubinstein x Diplomat) and was the price highlight at the Verden Foal Auction three years ago. He was selected for the 2007 Bundeschampionate and won the 70-day performance test in Adelheidsdorf. He was previously competed by Hannes Baumgart. He is bred by Ulrike and Reinhold Bosse and was owned by Bernhard Schaerffer.

In conjunction with the Hanoverian Horse Society of Australia, the Organising Committee is pleased to announce that Jörn Kubelke will be our special guest at the coming Sydney CDI to ride the finalists in the Hanoverian Horse Society of Australia NSW Young Dressage Horse Championships. Jörn will ride the winner of each age group in the HHSA Finals and along with the judging panel, will determine one overall Young Horse winner.

The Dutch dressage, show jumping and eventing riders that are in the running for Olympic team qualification had to do a physical fitness test at the National Sport Center in Papendal, The Netherlands. 

According to the Associated Press, the Spanish Riding School in Vienna, Austria, is on the verge of bankruptcy. The 430-year-old school, whose shows at the former imperial stables at the Hofburg Palace in downtown Vienna are among the Austrian capital's top tourist attractions, lost nearly $2.9 million last year, said business adviser Elisabeth Guertler. Guertler, the former chief executive of Vienna's prestigious Opera Ball, said high personnel costs were to blame for the school's mounting losses. Its 17 riders are paid bonuses while on the road that can boost their monthly salaries to $14,700, she said.

The Horse Magazine reported that Rachael Sanna's WEG mount Chatham Park Jac has been sold to a Swedish Young Rider. The bay KWPN gelding by Jazz x Kind of Magic is bred by Peter van der Zwan and sold to Australia by Nico Witte. Under Sanna, Jac competed at the 2006 World Equestrian Games. The horse has been for sale for quite some time and was rumoured to have sold to an Australian dressage enthusiast but that deal did not go through. According to the Horse Magazine, the bay has now sold to Sweden.