Cathrine Dufour & Cassidy Post Personal Best Score to Lead Denmark To Top of Odense Nations Cup Standings
9 years ago StraightArrow Comments Off on Cathrine Dufour & Cassidy Post Personal Best Score to Lead Denmark To Top of Odense Nations Cup Standings
ODENSE, Denmark, May 15, 2016–Cathrine Dufour and Cassidy posted a personal best score in the Grand Prix Special Sunday to give Denmark the lead over Sweden in the CDIO3* Nations Cup Grand Prix and set up a showdown in the Freestyle Monday.
The 24-year-old Cathrine and Cassidy that have been a partnership since the juniors six years ago and are a contender for the Danish team for the summer Olympics scored 75.961 per cent to place first in the Special. With team mate Daniel Bachmann Andersen on Blue Hors Hotline receiving a score of 70.725 per cent, Denmark leapfrogged over Sweden that was the overnight leader after the Grand Prix.
A strong performance by Kristy Oatley and Du Soleil kept Australia in fourth place behind Germany and widened the gap with the United States in fifth.
Standings of the teams after the Grand Prix Special: 1. Denmark 362.546; 2. Sweden 360.779; Germany 340.513; 4. Australia 338.129; 5. United States of America 335.724; 6. Great Britain 331.357; 7. Finland 328.021.
Denmark won the Nations Cup in Great Britain in 2014 and 2015 but a win at home would be a boost to the dressage community that had to qualify enough individuals to put together a team for the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in August.
Cathrine began competing Cassidy, a Danish Warmblood gelding.(Caprimond E.H. x Donnerhall), first as a Junior winning medals at the European Championships in 2010, then as a Young Rider taking silver at the Europeans in 2011 before sweeping the European Young Rider Championships in 2012 and 2013.
The pair began Big Tour 10 months ago and with two first places in this Nations Cup gave Cathrine and Cassidy, now 13 years old, four victories in nine starts at CDI Grand Prix.
Juliette Ramel on Buriel K.H. scoring on 72.137 per cent and Rose Mathisen on Zuidenwind on 71.922 per cent kept Sweden within sight of Denmark going into the Freestyle which will decide the event.
The Nations Cup series is in the first year as an official International Equestrian Federation (FEI) annual event after three years as a test program. The first event this year was the CDIO3* in Wellington, Florida at the end of March, won by the United States. Other competitions this year are in France, Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and Great Britain.
Results:
CDIO3* Grand Prix Special
Judges: E: Lars ANDERSSON (SWE), H: Magnus RINGMARK (SWE), C: Hans-Christian MATTHIESEN (DEN), M: Francis VERBEEK (NED), B: Lone DICHMANN (DEN)
