Austrian Grand Prix team rider Hannes Mayr has retired his 17-year old Austrian warmblood mare Ellis from competition. The dark bay mare said goodbye to the sport in a special ceremony held at the Pappas Amadeus Indoor Horse Show in Salzburg begin December.
Bred by Ernst Mayr in St. Marienkirchen, Austria, Ellis is born in 1994 and is by Grundstein II x Benjamin.
Under Ernst's son Hannes the dark bay mare was member of the Austrian Grand Prix team at the 2007 and 2009 European Dressage Championships. They were reseve Austrian Champions in 2007 and 2010. In 2008 they won bronze at the national championships.
The 17-year old mare is still in top shape and last November they won the Grand Prix Special in Vienna with 67.289%. At the 2011 CDI Salzburg, Ellis competed in her last show and finished seventh with 67,533% in the Grand Prix Special.
During the retirement ceremony in Salzburg, Ellis stood in the spotlight one final time. While "Time to Say Goodbye" played on the background, the audience got to see the highlights in her career on the video screen. A visibly moved Hannes thanked his family for their support.
Source: Pferdezucht Austria
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