Swiss junior rider Elena Krattiger and her 10-year old Danish warmblood mare Ramia Lox booked major triumph in their first international as a new pair in the CDI Junior division at the 2015 CDIO Saumur on 30 April - 3 May 2015. The fresh duo won the team and Kur tests with 70.730% and 73.125% and finished second in the individual behind Dutch Junior Zoe Schipper.
“Ramia was very relaxed and motivated during the whole event," said 16-year old Elena, who moved from ponies to horses this year. “It was really fun to ride her and she always gave me her best. Unfortunately, we made some mistakes in the Individual. Nevertheless it was a very satisfying week for me, especially because it was my first international event at Junior level. Of course the tests are not perfect yet, but we are working on that!”
The 2015 CDIO Saumur was not blessed with good weather as tradition once again dictated rain during most of the competition. The sun only appeared for the final afternoon on Sunday. Elena says because of the rain the footing was very bad and the arena was under water.
“However, the atmosphere in the Swiss team was very good and we had a lot of fun," she added.
Making the move from Ponies to Juniors wasn't really very difficult according to Elena, who had already competed on a dressage horse at M-level when she was 11 years old.
“I also did show jumping with a horse, so to ride horses wasn't really a new concept for me," she explained.
The Krattiger family discovered Ramia Lox (by Romanov x Victory) in an advertisement on the Eurodressage Equimarket and fell for the elegant mare's experience. She had already won team bronze under her previous rider Denmark's Emilie Holm Toft at the 2013 European Championships, and started with Elena in January 2015.
“She is very beautiful and always highly motivated. She always gives me her best and tries to do everything properly. That’s why I really enjoy riding her every day," said Elena. "When she enters the arena, she gives you the feeling that she wants to win, which is very motivating for me as well.”
Elena is trained by the Swiss national coach Heidi Bemelmans, who is responsible for the Swiss dressage team at international shows. She rides at a big show jumping center near Berne and says it is not always easy to practise when there are jumps all over the arena.
"You need to improvise all the time," she laughed. "The owners of the centre are very kind though, and they make a huge effort to make everything as easy as possible for us.”
With just the one horse in work, Elena has planned the Compiègne in France at the beginning of June and then maybe Hagen as her next two events.
“What happens after that, we don’t know yet,” added Elena, “I also attend a sports school in Bernd and I’ll graduate in 3 years and then probably go on to university.”
by Sarah Warne
Related Links
Scores 2015 CDIO Saumur
Eurodressage Photo Database: Ramia Lox