Grand Prix Freestyle 816

Grand Prix Freestyle
by Bonnie Rombach

Sunday, August 16, 1998, the final day of the absolute best equestrian tournament ever produced in the modern world. The sun is still shining. The temperature is ideal for horses and spectators alike. Everywhere one looks there are tired but contented faces. The staff has had to put out the occasional fire, like preventing scalpers from selling used tickets for already occupied seats in the grandstands for huge prices, or coordinating the arrival of the German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, or keeping the rival reporters out of each others’ hair. Each time that I looked in on Helen she had a telephone in one hand and/or a walkie talkie in the other, while trying to make some last minute changes in the announcers’ text because some dignitary showed up unexpectedly at the last minute, and she could still smile at honored guests as they wandered through her office. Anyone who has been involved with organizing even a small show, knows how much work is involved behind the scenes. At Aachen it involves 20 permanent year round staff and hundreds and hundreds (700) truly dedicated volunteers.

The Grand Prix Kuer started at 11:30 in the morning with the top 12 competitors from the previous days’ CDIO Grand Prix and CDIO Grand Prix Special slated to compete. Unfortunately, Karen Rehbein’s 17 year old stallion, Donnerhall had been slightly injured during the night. He was excused from competing so as not to aggravate the problem, as he has been selected for the German team along with Gigolo and Isabell Werth, Rusty and Ulla Salzgeber, and Gracioso and Nadine Capellmann-Biffar.

The first horse to go in the freestyle was the black stallion, Olympic Ferro with Coby van Baalen from the Netherlands. As already reported, this stallion has a terrific passage and Coby used this talent very effectively to Beatles’ music including „Yellow Submarine." Their two tempi’s and one tempi’s were beautiful and she performed a very pleasing piaffe pirouette that took advantage of Ferro’s rhvthm and height and avoided the swing that he sometimes has when not turning. Their score of 74.16 was well earned. Coby is 41 years old and trains with German trainer Johann Hinnemann.

Juergen Wirths from Germany with the 13 year old black bay gelding, Souveraen was the next to go. He was born in 1952, married with three children, and did not start to compete at the Grand Prix level until 1997 with his horse Souveraen W. He will most likely be the reserve rider for the German team at the World Equestrian Games in Rome. His music for the freestyle was well suited to his horse with smooth transitions using rhythm from plucking guitars, flutes and violins with drums emphasizing his extensions. At the end he performed one handed piaffe pirouettes and a lovely passage to the halt for a score of 71.88

Anne van Olst is an attractive, light blond, 36 year old rider for Denmark who presently resides in Holland with her Dutch husband and trains with the German trainer Norbert van Laak. She is competing with the 11 year old, Dutch bred, dark bay gelding, Dempsey by Dan Senator. She started her freestyle with passage and then piaffe to „Pomp and Circumstance." Her half passes were to „Glow Little Glow Worm," and she used pan pipes and guitar in the walk and then ended again with a nice piaffe to „Pomp and Circumstance" for an excellent score of 72.41

The next competitor was Hofgut Albfuehren’s Peron with Ann Kathrin Ehlen. Ann Kathrin is only 21 years old, and before competing with Peron, she was 5^th individually and on the winning team at the European Young Riders Championship in 1996 on the bay mare, Vive la France. With Peron at Dortmund this year she was 5^th in the Grand Prix and 4^th in the GP Special; at Wiesbaden - 8^th in the Grand Prix and 5^th in the GP Special; and at Spangenberg - 6^th in the Grand Prix and 9^th in the GP Special. The music for their freestyle was a medley of tunes from „My Fair Lady." They entered in passage to „Wouldn’t It Be Loverly" and did extensions to „A Little Bit of Luck," and ended with a one handed piaffe pirouette and passage for a score of 70.37

Kyra Kyrklund, born in 1951 has been riding since she was 11 and is national dressage trainer of Finland and chief trainer at the Flyinge National Stud in Sweden. She has been competing with Flyinge Amiral at the Grand Prix level since 1995. She took risks in her freestyle by doing an extended canter down the middle line to a canter pirouette and then an extension back up the center line to piaffe at the end. Her music contained bells and xylophone, drums for the walk and an oriental flavor to the music. She ended her freestyle with a one handed extended trot down the middle line to a halt in front of the judge at C for a 71.43

The 34 year old Rudolf Zeilinger, made a name for himself as the trainer of Michelle Gibson with Peron before the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. When Peron returned to him for further training, he put Ann Katrin Ehlen together with the stallion. He himself competes with Livijno, a 9 year old dark bay gelding. He rode his freestyle to Pink Floyd’s „The Wall" and „The Other Side of the Moon," to a respectable score of 69.46, a score that would have won many competitions, but not in the present company.

One wouldn’t think that scores this high could be bettered, but the five horses who performed after the break were in a class by themselves. Nadine Capellmann-Biffar, the 33 year old from Wuerselen by Aachen with Gracioso pushed the ceiling up to 77.02 with a consistent, well planned test to light music with piano and strings. It is interesting how the addition of music in the right cadence and rhythm often improves the quality of the piaffe and passage. Perhaps horses do have an ear for music.

The eighth combination in the ring filled the standing room, the stairwells, and every nook and cranny with spectators. Isabell Werth, the 29 year old daughter of a German horse breeder and student of Dr. Uwe Schulten-Baumer Sr., with her horse Gigolo FRH is a genius in the saddle. They have already won every world, European, and Olympic championship available, and at 15 Gigolo is just as supple and fresh as ever. Not only Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra did it „My Way" but Gigolo and Isabell with passage traversals, piaffe pirouettes, extensions to pirouettes, and on and on did it to „My Way" for a score of 82.84

Anky van Grunsven, just one year older than Isabell, is the most successful Dutch rider in the history of dressage in Holland. She has been competing successfully at the Grand Prix level since 1987 when she was 19 years old. She won the World Cup Final three years in a row and was silver medalist at Atlanta with Bonfire. She rode her freestyle with her present mount Olympic TCN Partout to the exciting music from „Gold Finger." Their extensions were „huge." Their score - „only" 77.07

The next rider in the ring, the 43 year old Louise Nathorst from Sweden, was an active jumping rider until she injured her back in 1974. With her present horse, Walk on Top, she has been mixing in the fray with the top competitors in the world. Walk on Top has many of the same championship characteristics that Gigolo has with his smooth, relaxed work, with extensions that flow and cover so much ground that they seem to travel across the whole diagonal in just a few strides. They, too, almost broke the 80 barrier with a 79.88 for second place behind Isabell and Gigolo.

The last rider to compete was the 40 year old Ulla Salzgeber and her 10 year old Russian bred, Rusty. This team won their first Grand Prix Special when Rusty was only 8 years old. One might think that reaching Grand Prix at such an early age would leave holes in the training, but Rusty seems to be an exception. He is wonderfully „losgelassen" (supple and relaxed) and there is a fluid beauty to the way he moves that puts him consistently among the top contenders. At Dortmund they won the Grand Prix and the Special. In their freestyle here in Aachen, they entered in canter with a big extension. My only comment in my notes was „gorgeous." Final score - 78.56 for third place.

1^st - Isabell Werth and „Nissan Gigolo FRH" 82.84
2^nd - Louise Nathhorst and „LRF Walk on Top" 79.88
3^rd - Ulla Salzgeber and „Rusty 47" 78.56
4^th - Anky van Grunsven and „Gestion Olympic TCN Partout 77.07
5^th - Nadine Capellmann-Biffar and „Gracioso 8" 77.02
6^th - Coby van Baalen and „Olympic Ferro" 74.16
7^th - Anne van Olst and „Dempsey" 72.41
8^th - Juergen Wirths and „Souveraen W" 71.88
9^th - Kyra Kyrklund and „Flyinge Amiral" 71.43
10^th - Ann Kathrin Ehlen and „Hofgut Albfuehren’s Peron 70.43
11^th - Rudolf Zeilinger and „Livijno" 69.46

Having the opportunity to observe these great horses and riders over the last few days has added another unforgettable chapter to my life of „horse lurking." The biggest impression that I take away with me is the verification that the solid foundation based on the training scale (cadence/rhythm, relaxation/suppleness, contact/on the bit, impulsion, flexion, collection) must be faithfully adhered to. Each one of the very best horses - i.e. Gigolo, Walk on Top, and Rusty - was a shining example of this long established training system. „Frisch, froehlich, frei" - fresh, happy, and free.

Email Bonnie Rombach: Lorbas@aol.com

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