Dancer Forever Dances to Gold at the 6-year-old World Championships for Young Dressage Horses

Gold and bronze for the Vivaldi-sons Dancer Forever and Dream Boy

The KWPN bred Dancer Forever was dancing to gold in the final for the six year old dressage horses in Verden this afternoon. The son of Vivaldi became convincingly the new World Champion under Kirsten Brouwer. Auheim's Del Magico (s. Dimaggio) won for Austria the silver medal and bronze was also for the Netherlands, the KWPN stallion Dream Boy (s. Vivaldi) and Gerdine Maree.  In the qualifier it was very close, both Vivaldi-sons Dream Boy and Dancer Forever were first and second with minimal difference. Today again both stallion were really good in the test, fluent and correctly ridden, almost without mistakes. The judges Maria Colliander, Andrew Ralph Gardner, Kurt Christensen and Dr. Dietrich Plewa rewarded Dancer higher, especially for the rideablity and general impression (9.0 and 9.3). He got a 9.8 for the very powerful and expressive trot and a 9.3 for his uphill canter, always showed himself in a perfect frame. The final score of 9.04 gave the stallion the gold medal. A big compliment for his rider Kirsten Brouwer who won already bronze aboard Eye Catcher in the five year old final.

Dream Boy was very well presented by Gerdine Maree

Bronze medallist Dream Boy was very well presented by Gerdine Maree, the pair showed a fluent and faultless test. All flying changes were correct and that was sometimes a problem for the other horses. The stallion was not overvalued: 8.64 and only 0.02 behind the silver Auheim's Del Magico, a Hannovarian stallion ridden by Stephanie Dearing. The grey was praised by the judges for the 'picture of harmony'. His canter was his best gait (9.0) and his final score was 8.66.
 
The third Vivaldi-son Desperado and Emmelie Scholtens had really bad luck. After a very expressive and powerful trot-reprise (9.8) and the big, clear four-beat walk (9.0), problems occurred in canter, the flying changes failed. The pair was punished badly, in the mark for canter, for rideability and general impression (8.2, 7.0 and 8.0). And Emmelie and Desperado dropped to eighth place.
 

Den Haag under Beatrice Buchwald

Two horses ended in the top five who were qualified through the Small Final. On fourth the Westphalian stallion Den Haag (s. Diamond Hit) under Beatrice Buchwald, surprisingly because the flying changes were not oke. His final score was 8.62. And winner of the small final Lehmanns Lilo (s. De Noir) became fifth under Stine Doesing for Denmark. The blood-typed and long-legged mare got 8.56.
 
The fourth KWPN stallion in the final, Dorado (s. Krack C) ridden by Emmelie Scholtens became sixth with 8.48. There was only 0.62 difference in points between the silver medal and the tenth place.

All photos taken by Marjon Hoen