PRESS RELEASE
The Dressage competition got the FEI World Cups™ off to a great start on Thursday morning at the Longines Equita Lyon, Concours Hippique International. The crowds at Eurexpo were treated to a truly incredible performance by Justin Verboomen and the amazing Zonik Plus in the FEI World Cup™ Grand Prix presented byCRE-ARA. The Belgian rider stopped Isabell Werth (GER) from claiming her sixth victory in Lyon, riding her young and promising horse, Viva Gold OLD. Belgium had two riders on the podium, thanks to the excellent third place achieved by Larissa Pauluis and her trusty horse Flambeau.
The clash of the Titans
Everyone was expecting a real battle and they were certainly not disappointed. The defending champion was up against the five-time winner of this FEI World Cup™ stage in Lyon. Isabell Werth was the first of the two champions to take to the arena and she set the bar very high. The German rider delivered a superb performance with her new ten-year-old star, only marred by a small mistake on the tempi changes. Her dark chestnut horse is extremely expressive and responsive and certainly destined for a bright future. And the pair duly took the lead in the competition with a score of 77.587%.
When being relaxed leads to perfection
Then, the silver medallists from the last World Championships took to the arena. All those watching were immediately struck by the black stallion's lightness; it seemed as if he was almost floating through the air. The two "partners" gave a genuine recital in terms of their performance, notably executing some very lively passages-piaffes and pirouettes that were close to perfection. The pair were rewarded with an excellent score of 79.065% and took first place in the class. Justin Verboomen is always trying to keep his horse as relaxed as possible and was delighted with this performance: "Today, I just wanted to go through the routine while trying to give him a bit more freedom, at times, and demand much less from him, so that he would feel at home. Everything felt really good. He was easy to ride during the trot, the piaffe and passage, I hardly had to give him any guidance at all. In fact, I’m not quite sure what he actually did in the end, I’ll have to watch the video… (laughs). During the gallop, he still needs to move more freely. Tomorrow, the objective will be to maintain the same mindset, to have fun with the music and, for me too, to enjoy the test even more." Well, we are looking forward to tomorrow then!
A personal best for Larissa Pauluis
Larissa Pauluis, who is a regular at the event in Lyon, took third place with a score of 74.630%, setting a new personal best in the process. "Flambeau had energy to spare and was at times a little explosive. But that’s just like him! He may be sixteen and a half, but he's constantly reminding me that he still has a great deal to offer. My aim was to reach 75% this season, and we came really close today. A few little mistakes cost us points, notably when he stumbled at the end of the diagonal. Lyon is a competition that Flambeau and I love, and one that he really seems to perform well at."
Two French riders were competing in this FEI World Cup™ stage. Alexandre Ayache took 11th place, riding Ruling Olivia (68.543%), whilst Alizée Roussel and Bel Amour came 14th with a score of 66.783% in their first FEI World Cup™. "Alizée was unlucky because her horse got a bit spooked by the screen. Despite that, he stayed with her and they put in a good performance. Their ranking does not reflect their performances in the arena. Bel Amour has many good qualities, but he isn’t always easy to manage. He has made a lot of progress over the past year. I think he will be better tomorrow. As for Alexandre, his mare was a bit tentative during the piaffe. Still, he performed a fairly smooth test. They need to maintain the same level of activity while finding a bit more harmony," said Jean Morel, Head Coach of the French dressage team.
View all the results and start lists here.
Photo: PSV-J. Morel