Dressage-News

By KENNETH J. BRADDICK

WELLINGTON, Florida, Mar. 28, 2019–Jill Irving of Canada rode Degas to victory in the Adequan Gobal Dressage Festival CDI4* for the Special 12 days days after breaking a rib when thrown from the horse in an honor round in the same arena. Big Tour newcomer Jessica Kozel on Denzello posted their first victory by taking the CDI4* Grand Prix for the Freestyle.

Jill and the 17-year-old Hanoverian gelding scored 69.935 per cent for the win, with Charlotte Jorst of Reno, Nevada on Deep Impact second on 66.696 per cent and Joanne Vaughan of Georgia on Elmegardens Marquis third on 65.438 per cent.

Jill joked about the accident and admitted the biggest impact had been not to ride too many horses each day until fully recovered.

“Extended trots?” she replied to a question. “I didn’t go for it. I broke a rib so I don’t know if I like to go fast. Bouncing is a bit of an issue.”

“Some people didn’t clap today because they were worried for me,” she said at another point.

“But I’m just really glad that I could ride,” she said, “because we’re trying to go to the Pan Am Games and this is a qualification and it all went well. The chance to bring him back into the ring just to understand that he’s thinking about the Grand Prix and not the presentations.”

Jessica Kozel of Loxahatchee, Florida and Denzello, a 16-year-old Hanoverian gelding, scored 69.239 per cent for her victory. Germany’s Michael Klimke on Royal Dancer on 68.196 per cent with Katherine Bateson Chandler of Wellington on Alcazar third on 66.000 per cent.

Jessica began showing Denzello at Big Tour this year, four years after last shown by U.S. Olympic and World Games rider Lisa Wilcox. Jessica had been a groom for Lisa.

“I thought it was a little surreal, I didn’t think it was for us,” Jessica said after she was declared the winner.

“So when she (the steward) walked up to me with the blue ribbon I was like, ‘is that for me?’ Not that she would be joking but I just would have never expected in a million years.

“When I dreamed of this season for two years, because I rehabbed him when I started riding him. When I first took the ride we spent a lot of time together, and you don’t just start by going right into the ring. You spend a lot of time and hours together just doing the most mundane things. Never in my life would I have dreamed that we would have been able to do what we did today. It was really an honor to not only have our best ride yet, but to be able to put it together.”