What's Happening: March 2014 - Part 2

Sat, 03/29/2014 - 09:16
What's Happening in the Dressage World?

A lot is happening on the horse market. Horses.nl reported that the Dutch dressage and dealer's couple Nico and Madeleine Witte-Vrees acquired the 4-year old Dutch warmblood mare Fuzette

(by Zhivago x OO Seven x Jazz). Bred by KWPN's most renowned breeder, the late Huub van Helvoirt, Fuzette won the 2013 Young Dressage Talent competition in Roosendaal under Yvonne Copal. The mare was owned by the Kretz family.

Ridehesten published that the Danish duo Patricia Florin and Bjarke Laustsen, who are based in Gunnarlunde, Sweden, acquired the recently approved 3-year old Danish warmblood stallion Ellely's Tornado (by Temptation x Flemmingh).  The pair is best know as being the previous owner of international Grand Prix horse Akeem Foldager.

Dutch Under 25 rider Dana van Lierop had to undergo surgery to her foot and is sidelined for a brief while. The young rider, who has been campaigning the Austrian owned Wunschtraum in the U25 Grand Prix, had to be operated on due to a foot infection. It won't keep her long out of the saddle. "I can't do nothing for a long time," Van Lierop told Eurodressage. "As soon as I can fit a shoe I'll be riding again." Dana's young riders horse Sting is being offered for sale at the 2014 Excellent Dressage Sales in April and her 2012 European Junior Riders Champion horse DJ Tiesto has been injured since the autumn of 2012. However, Dana is hopeful that she might make her come back with Tiesto at YR level this year.

There is quite some turmoil going on in The Netherlands where Bartels Academy and its assistant rider Mischa Koot are being sued by former Dutch super model Lonneke Engel, who had her horse U2 (by OO Seven) in training there. Engel picked up her horse in January 2014 and discovered the bay gelding was almost irreparably injured in the mouth. Veterinarians at the academic equine clinic in Ghent diagnosed the horse with severe damage to the jaw bone. "The jaw is destroyed because of excessive bit use," Engel's lawyer Stephan Wensing stated. The 32-year old Engel and her lawyer went public with the story, which was printed in detail in the Dutch national newspaper De Telegraaf. Bartels issued a statement denying all allegations of animal abuse and calling this action "defamation and nonsense." They will most likely meet each other in court.

Imke Schellekens-Bartels' retired top horse, the Hanoverian mare Sunrise (by Singular Joter x Warkant), has given birth to her second foal, a filly by De Niro. The filly is dark bay with a small star on her forehead and has been appropriately called Daybreak. In 1999 Sunrise gave birth to her first foal, a filly Madel (by Metternich). The news of the birth was a positive note on which the Dutch equestrian media reported intensely.

Sadly the filly became unwell after a few days and was transported to the Equine Clinic of Utrecht where it passed away due to a lung bleeding. Schellekens is bereaved by the loss. Sunrise is doing fine and will return home to Bartels' Academy.

American Grand Prix rider Catherine Haddad-Staller celebrated her 50th birthday this week. Congratulations!