Edward heads off Adelinde in Olympia Dressage opener at Olympia
December 15, 2009
Dressage favourites Edward Gal and Moorlands Totilas duly obliged to win the World Cup qualifying grand prix, the first class at this year’s Olympia, London International Horse Show. The Dutch combination, team and individual gold medallists at the FEI European Championships at Windsor, and currently the World’s number one, headed off team compatriot and rival Adelinde Cornelissen and her Dutch-bred chestnut Parzival – last year’s World Cup winners at Olympia. But it was close with the leggy chestnut at times equally comparable to Edward’s black stallion and both in a class of their own scoring over 80%. “He is still so young but he never lets me down. The audience was a little excited – which is good – but also difficult, and he was a little bit tense at the start but after the walk he began to feel really good,” said Edward who later in the evening was awarded third place in the Dutch sport personality of the year beaten by a gymnast and a speed skater.
British rider Carl Hester and Liebling, members of this year’s European silver medal team, despite the unenviable task of following Totilas into the arena, delighted the home crowd to produce their best test to date to stand third. “I thought Christmas was ruined when I saw the draw – how do you follow that,” queried Carl. “But my aim was to produce a test without mistakes and that was his first really clean test and I was delighted with the feeling he gave me.”
All thirteen starters now go forward to tomorrow night’s FEI World Cup Grand Prix Freestyle to music, sponsored by Rowan Management Ltd and supported by Horse & Hound.
