Some of Highest Ranked US Combinations, Trio of Top Horses Untried at CDIs With American Riders Scheduled to Compete in California, Florida in Next Week
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Mar. 20, 2024
By KENNETH J. BRADDICK
Some of the highest ranked United States combinations and a trio of top horses untried in the international arena with new American riders are scheduled to compete in California and Florida in the next week that could dramatically improve the team’s outlook for the Olympics in Paris.
Steffen Peters currently ranked No. 1 in the U.S. standings with his Olympic and World Equestrian Games team silver medal mount, the 16-year-old Suppenkasper, and Anna Buffini who went straight to third ranking with their sole international appearance of the 14-year-old mare Fiontini are both entered in the CDI3* at Del Mar, California this weekend.
Bohemian ridden by Endel Ots, and Helix and Lars van de Hoenderheide ridden by Adrienne Lyle are entered in the CDI3* at Wellington’s Global Dressage Festival next week that will be the first international events since the horses were bought by Heidi Humphries’ Zen Elite Equestrian Center of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida in late 2023. Katherine Bateson Chandler on Haute Couture with on-the-ground coaching by Carl Hester this week is entered in Global’s CDI4*.
Jack, a 12-year-old Rhinelander gelding that was bought for Günter Seidel by Louise Leatherdale from the Germany-based Australian Warwick McLean late last year will make his American debut at Del Mar. But Günter, a three-time Olympian for the U.S., told dressage-news.com that Jack is too green at this stage and he does not want to push the horse. He is the long time coach of Anna Buffini, who is showing in Del Mar both Fiontini as well as FRH Davinia la Douce that she competed in the 2022 and 2023 World Cup Finals.
The World Equestrian Games in Normandy in 2014 through the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 were the most successful in history for the United States–team and individual silver for Laura Graves at the 2018 WEG, team silver at Tokyo and team bronze at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Suppenkasper, on both the 2018 WEG and Tokyo Olympic silver medal teams, is the only remaining active competition horse from that period.
After this weekend’s competition at Del Mar, only two CDIs remain in California for riders to earn qualification for the European competition circuit.
The final of Global’s winter-long circuit next week will be the international coming out event for the Wellington based riders Endel Ots on Zen Elite’s Bohemian and Adrienne Lyle on Lars van de Hoenderheide and Helix.
All three horses have been competed by their new riders at Global’s national division with the riders appearing comfortable and with scores well above 70%.
Bohemian, a 14-year-old Westfalen gelding, was the mount of Danish star Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour on her country’s Tokyo Games team and at the 2021 European Championships.
Since 2006, Endel has competed six different horses at national Grand Prix. He also rode two horses in the World Young Horse Championships, Lucky Strike in both five and six year old divisions. Endel and Lucky Strike were selected for the U.S. team at the 2019 Pan American Games but the horse was injured in transit and was withdrawn.
Adrienne Lyle is a double Olympian who rode Wizard at London in 2012 and Salvino on the historically successful silver medal teams at the Tokyo Olympics and the 2018 World Equestrian Games.
The two horses she rides for Zen Elite are the 13-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding Lars van de Hoenderheide that was ridden by reigning world champion rider Charlotte “Lottie” Fry of Great Britain and Helix, 12-year-old KWPN gelding previously shown by Maria Mattson of Sweden.
Sarah Tubman, based in Wellington, is ranked second on First Apple on which she won gold in both the 2019 and 2023 Pan American Games. But she plans to put off completing qualification until April when she plans for the 14-year-old stallion to be at his peak.
After the Global final, three qualifying CDIs are on the schedule for Florida: two at Terra Nova near Sarasota and one at Ocala’s World Equestrian Center.
May 5 is the deadline for selection of a squad of about eight Americans to go to Europe to compete for the three places on the team for the Paris Olympics. The team of three and a reserve likely will be selected after the Rotterdam Nations Cup June 20-23 but actual final team may be determined by the Nations Cup at Aachen, Germany July 1-7.
Olympic dressage is scheduled July 30-Aug. 4
