Danish Grand Prix rider and Olympian Lars Petersen celebrated his 50th birthday on 3 September 2015. Petersen is based in Wellington, Florida, where he runs Legacy Farms with his wife, American FEI rider Melissa Taylor.
Check out the video on your right of Jessica von Bredow-Werndl riding Unee BB in a Grand Prix test at Gut Ising in a snaffle and without a saddle ! Thumbs up!
Dressursport Deutschland reported that the annual Bundeschampionate in Warendorf, Germany, will be saying goodbye to two prominent figures this year. The past 21 years Michael Ripploh has been serving riders drinks who leave the arena in the final round. The Warendorf based trainer and horse dealer is now saying goodbye to his in-gate post. Ripploh's life partner Fran Goodsell has opened an interior design store in Warendorf called Bridgehouse. Announced Christoph Hess will also not be returning to the 2016 edition of the Bundeschampionate. Judge Hess will resign from his position at the German Equestrian Federation in April 2016 and has scheduled a cruise with his wife in September 2016.
German based Canadian Grand Prix rider Alexandria Lampe-Wilson has given birth to her second baby on 6 July 2015. The girl has been named Tessa. "Now that she is a couple months old I am starting to find some time to get back into the saddle after a long pause," Lampe told Eurodressage. "I am excited to see if my two girls will be interested in riding in the future, but in the meantime I am looking forward to getting back into training myself."
The Judges Committee of Dressage Ireland has invited Katrina Wüst as guest judge tutor at the 2015 Dressage Ireland Judges Gala on Thursday 1 October, 2015 at Spruce Lodge,, covering the theme of The Principles of Dressage Judging. The Gala will be one with a difference as DVD footage and live horses will be used.
German FEI Steward Johannes "Hansi" Wallmeier passed away after a long battle with cancer right before his 73rd birthday. For 50 years Wallmeier worked for the German Equestrian Federation where he worked on the Sport department. He retired on 1 April 2007 but remained highly active. Wallmeier was the witness at the renowned incident at the 1997 European Show Jumping Championships, where he discovered the groom of Hugo Simon's E.T. with an empty seringue in the stall. The FEI however cleared Simon of doping charges due to lack of evidence. Wallmeier was also involved in the incident with Rene tebbel blistering his horse's legs and he spotted McLain Ward's illegal boots with pins at the 2006 WEG. Hansi was one of the few stewards who had the guts to stand up for horse welfare and send riders home for poor equitation. Hansi's wife Liane, who also worked as a renowned steward and ring master in Germany, died last year.
Danish World Young Horse Championship team horse Egebjerggårds Dutchmann (by Sandreo x Sam Sam) has been sold to Danish Grand Prix rider Helene Melsen. Astrid Therkelsen Grøn and her husband Allan Grøn acquired "Duddi" as a foal. Astrid competed Dutchmann at the 2015 World Young horse Championships in Verden and finished fourth in the consolation finals.
We are sending our condolences to Belgian Grand Prix team rider Philippe Jorissen and his family, who had to deal with the tragic, untimely death of Christien Nagels-Jorissen. The 35-year old Christien was Philippe's younger sister and mother to Lucas. She succumbed to lung cancer on 11 September 2015 just one month before her 36th birthday. Christien was a dressage rider who used to compete young horses and up to national M-level in Belgium. RIP.
Wilken Treu, the managing director of the Westfalian breed society, got married on the weekend of 12-13 September 2015 to his long-time partner Katharina Schlieker. The Nienburg born 33-year old Treu lives in Gimbte, Germany, and became the managing director for the Westfalian breed society in October 2012.
DIXIT
German O-judge Gotthilf Riexinger and show organizer of the CDI Stuttgart was highly outspoken after the 2015 European Championships about the DOKR's decision to field an injured Totilas on the team in order to get team gold. Riexinger stated:
What the German federation did has nothing to fo with fair sport. They thought that with those horse they could get the most points and accepted his injury. This has nothing to do with fair sport but the German federation has certainy damaged itself. I consider it unacceptable that Klaus Roeser as employee of Paul Schockemohle leads the German Dressage Selection Committee, when Paul's horse Totilas is concerned. It's a conflict of interest which has to be avoided at all cost. In such a case he should not take up such a post. All of this should never have happened to a dressage country such as Germany and should never happen again.