Dressage-News

By KENNETH J. BRADDICK

Canadian riders Jacqueline Brooks and her Olympic mount D Niro and Jaimey Irwin and Lindor’s Finest will compete at the World Cup Final in Gothenberg, Sweden next month as representatives of North America, the first combinations from Canada to ride at the only annual global championships in four years. There will be no rider from the United States.

Jacquie Brooks on the Swedish Warmblood gelding (D-Day x Alitalia x Napolean 625) finished second in the World Cup North American League which is entitled to places in the Final, while Jaimey Irwin was the second reserve, the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) said Tuesday.

David Marcus who with Chrevi’s Capital, the horse he rode at last summer’s Olympics in London on the team with Jacquie and D Niro,, was atop the NAL ranking but chose not go to the Final. Shelly Francis of Loxahatchee, Florida who was the first reserve on Doktor also decided not to go to Sweden.

Canada has not had a horse and rider in the Word Cup Final since the Final in Las Vegas 2009 won by Steffen Peters of the United States.

The two Canadians qualified at events on the U.S. East Coast as there were no World Cup events in Canada and none are scheduled for 2013/2014.

Adelinde Cornelissen of the Netherlands and Jerich Parzival will defend their title, hoping to pick up their straight World Cup. She will, however, face strong competition from compatriot Edward Gal and Glock’s Undercover and Germany’s Helen Langehanenberg and Damon Hill NRW.

The North American League–one of four leagues, the others being Western Europe, Central Europe and the Pacific–gets two invitations to the Final that this year will celebrate its 29th anniversary of the event that was created as a Final of the European indoor winter circuit designed around the Musical Freestyle.

The Pacific League will not be represented as Lyndal Oatley of Australia dropped out when her Sandro Boy sustained a minor injury.

Tina Konyot of Palm City, Florida and Calecto V that were on the United States team at the 2012 Olympics in London and the 2010 World Equestrian Games in Kentucky posted the highest score in the qualifiers but two results are required and a minor injury she sustained the week before the lasy qualifying event knocked her out of contention.

Adrienne Lyle of Ketchum, Idaho, also a member of the U.S. squad at the London Games, received the second highest result but Wizard suffered an injury that the rider said was enough to prevent an effort to get another score that could win her an invitation to Sweden.

The last time there was a Canadian at the World Cup Final was at Las Vegas in 2009 when Ashley Holzer competed Pop Art, now retired. Amsterdam in 2006 was the last time a Canadian was in the Final outside North America, when Cindy Ishoy and Proton represented the country.

World Cup events in North America have had mixed fortunes in the second decade of the 21st century.

In 2009/2010 six qualifiers were held in the United States and three in Canada. In 2010/2011 there were six on the U.S. East Coast, two in California and none in Canada. A year later the number rose to seven in the United States, including two in California, and two in Canada.

Entries in several 2011/2012 events were so low–two each in the California qualifiers, four in two Florida shows despite one carrying $50,000 in prize money–that organizers lost substantial amounts of money with five judges and other associated costs, caused to a large extent by a U.S. Equestrian Federation decision to not require Freestyles for Olympic selection.

This season, the number shrank to a total of eight, all on the U.S. Eastern Seaboard, five in Florida alone–none in California and none in Canada.

The provisional schedule for 2013/2014 lists a calendar of two qualifiers in California, seven in Florida and possibly two in New York and one in Pennsylvania. None in Canada.

Another factor is that North American League combinations that are successful then face a significant financial penalty in expenses.

According to the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) that is responsible for the event, entries from the U.S. and Canada receive 11.000 Swiss francs (US$11,650) per horse and 1,500 Swiss francs (US$1,590) per athlete.

Those payments cover about half the costs and riders without wealthy sponsors who accept an invitation to the Final either pay the difference themselves, raise funds from fans and supporters, go into debt or hope their national federation pick up the tab for the rest of the expenses.