Dressage-News

By KENNETH J. BRADDICK

Canada’s choice of its Olympic dressage team has become embroiled in controversy after at least one selector was removed over a conflict of interest.

Ariana Chia, a prospect for the team with Guateque IV, a 14-year-old P.R.E. stallion, and highest ranked Canadian rider on the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) standings at No. 121, appealed selection of the team by a panel that included a member with a family connection to a rider.

The panel initially selected Naïma Moreira Laliberté on her 17-year-old Statesman; Jill Irving on Delacroix, 14-year-old Hanoverian gelding, and Camille Carier Bergeron on Finlanderin, 14-year-old Oldenburg mare for the team with Chris von Martels as the reserve on Eclips, the KWPN gelding that he competed at in the Tokyo Olympics and is now 15 years old.

Ariana and Guateque were selected as second reserve and told initially would have to pay for her and the horse to go to Europe for the Paris Games.

However, she won the appeal and the list of selectors was changed.

She was also reportedly offered $25,000 to travel to Europe.

Further, questions have been raised about fitness of all the horses.

Equestrian Canada did not answered a query from dressage-news.com.

The dressage team has not yet been announced, though the jumper team was announced last Thursday with a note that dressage would be announced later.