Photo: German rider Pia Leuwer with Jard during the dressage test. Photo © Ashley Claus
BOEKELO – German rider Pia Leuwer tops the leaderboard after the first day of dressage at Military Boekelo-Enschede. Riding her thirteen-year-old Polish black gelding Jard, she scored 28 penalty points. She is followed by Britain’s Izzy Taylor with her ten-year-old grey gelding SBH Big Wall (28.5), while Swiss rider Robin Godel achieved nearly the same result with his seventeen-year-old bay gelding Grandeur de Lully CH (also 28.5).
Of the three Dutch combinations competing on the first day, Gert Jan Heinen achieved the best result. With his fourteen-year-old grey gelding Goliath, he managed to keep the gap to the leaders fairly small and currently sits in 18th place with 31.9 penalty points. He is provisionally leading the race for the national title. Jordy Wilken with his ten-year-old bay gelding Champ van’t Vhij (39.0) and Nina Hut with her fourteen-year-old bay gelding Carthageno (39.1) had to settle for 41st and 42nd place respectively in the interim standings.
Team riders to compete on Friday
The standings are expected to change significantly on Friday, as the final nine individual riders will compete, along with all the team combinations representing eight nations. For the Netherlands, the four debutants will start in the following order: Tijn de Blaauw with The Joker (10:53 a.m.), Aliene Ruyter with Veloumani Tess LY (12:04 p.m.), Sterre van Houte with Crossborder Radar Love (2:00 p.m.), and Splinter Bergsma as the penultimate starter (2:56 p.m.). The Australian rider will close the day six minutes later with Chiraz.
Irish rider Joseph Murphy, who was originally listed with three horses, withdrew Funny Guy from the dressage phase on Thursday.
For startlists and rankings, visit www.military-boekelo.nl