On 11 August 2015, the opening ceremony of the 2015 European Dressage Championships in Aachen will comprise a magnificent show with the German state stud quadrille of 64 stallions from all of the German state studs and their riders in traditional uniform will be the highlight.
The main stadium, which seats a crowd of 40,000, will be the location of the opening ceremony which will feature almost 1,000 people and several hundreds of horses. A European Championships hymn will be composed especially for the event and there will be loads of imaginative costumes.
During the Opening Ceremony, the almost 120-year animated history of the organisers, the Aachen-Laurensberger-Rennverein, will be re-enacted in a lively and impressive manner. A journey through the past decades, depicted by cart horse racing, elegant side-saddle riders, eventers and historic carriages, the development of the equestrian show in Aachen, unforgettable moments, victories, defeats, heroes and stories will whisk the spectators back into past eras. Not to forget the fantastic spectators, of course, which Aachen is famous for all over the globe.
The memories of the fantastic 2006 World Equestrian Games will also brought back: The impressive state stud quadrille comprising of 64 stallions from all of the German state studs and their riders wearing the traditional uniforms will be travelling to Aachen again to put in an amazing performance at the Opening Ceremony.
The group’s first and only performance so far was at the FEI World Equestrian Games in 2006. This unique display on the “Holy Grass“ thrilled the crowd back then. Nine years later they are back: The impressive quadrille will be doing the honours once again in Aachen, the “Mecca of the equestrian sport”.
-- Aachen press release - Photo © Barbara Schnell
Related Link
Eurodressage On the Scene at the 2015 European Dressage Championships