Anky van Grunsven has a reputation for being a perfectionist, but even she couldn’t find fault with her FEI Dressage World Cup winning freestyle aboard Keltec Salinero in her home country of the Netherlands on April 22. 

Riding to her signature music, van Grunsven urged Salinero to perfection in the piaffe and passage, scoring a 10 for their artistry and earning an impressive 87.75 percent.
   
“I liked everything today,” said van Grunsven.  “It was the best test so far that Keltec Salinero ever did.  He was relaxed, but we were able to go for it.”
   
They even had a beautiful square halt in the beginning, striking off into a foot-perfect passage/piaffe sequence.  This is their third World Cup win in three years.
   
Second and third were reversed from the Grand Prix results with Germany’s Isabell Werth claiming reserve aboard Warum Nicht FRH (81.15%) and Sweden’s Jan Brink grabbing third on Bjorsells Briar (79.32%).
   
Werth rode to a medley that included tunes as varied as “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “Pomp and Circumstance.”  She highlighted the enormous chestnut’s extensions in the trot and canter work.
   
“I’m really happy to have him at such a high level,” said Werth.  “I hope we can keep going up, but today I’m really happy.  He was really concentrated and relaxed.”
   
They did have a mistake in the two-tempi changes, but Werth blamed herself and expressed her delight over her green mount’s consistency throughout the final.
   
“It was nice to see her doing so well,” said judge Gary Rockwell of Werth’s test.  “It’s nice to see someone creeping up who can be a challenger.”
   
Bjorsells Briar looked very professional, but ever so slightly flat in the freestyle after his superior Grand Prix test.
   
“My feeling in the Grand Prix was that I had him more in front of my leg,” said Brink.  “Maybe it was how I warmed him up—I should have made him go more.  There were a few mistakes, but I was in tune with the music, so that was OK.”
   
The Americans had to settle for a learning experience at this World Cup.  Arlene “Tuny” Page had a difficult start in her test, when Wild One went into passage instead of canter.  Her choreography calls for a double canter pirouette after the halt, but she improvised for a single when he misinterpreted her cue.
   
“I knew I was in trouble, but the horse came back and clocked off the twos,” said Page.  “I got a little ahead of the music, but the piaffe/passage tour was amazing.  He really went like a genuine international horse.”
   
They rode to a medley of songs from the 1960’s and ended up with 69.65 percent, which put them last in the “A” final.
   
“I was incredibly pleased with Tuny in the Grand Prix,” said Rockwell.  “It’s a big step up, and she was incredibly cool and composed.  She presented him fantastically.”
   
He explained that the mistakes today resulted from the electric atmosphere that surprises American horses.
   
“We don’t have many indoor shows,” said Rockwell.  “The camera flashes were everywhere.  There’s a tremendous future for that horse.”
   
The other American, Leslie Morse, looked much improved in her freestyle with Tip Top 962.  They danced to swing music in the “B” final, finishing second (71.45%) to Laura Bechtolsheimer of Great Britain and Douglas Dorsey (73.52%).
   
He was a little tight in his neck at times, but far more relaxed than in his Grand Prix performance where he was quite tense and had mistakes.
   
“The World Cup situation is very difficult,” said Morse.  “The world doesn’t see our horses on their best day.  People have to realize that our horses are coming from a long distance.”
   
She bemoaned the lack of indoor shows in the United States and expressed pride in Tip Top for how he handled the environment.  “I really enjoyed so much of his work,” said Morse.
   
Morse wasn’t the only one to improve on freestyle day.  Canada’s Cindy Ishoy put in a solid, if not brilliant test, aboard Proton (67.52%). 
   
The Netherlands’ Edward Gal also appeared to be back on form with Group 4 Securicor Lingh.  A swelling under the girth from a burst vein gave him trouble in the Grand Prix test.
   
“He was responding weirdly on the right side,” said Gal.  “I didn’t know it during the test, but the swelling was big and growing.” 
   
He iced Lingh continuously, and the swelling was gone in time for the freestyle, but Gal almost didn’t ride.  “It was mentally not good for me,” he said.  It was bad preparation.  But everyone said I must ride and by the end I was glad I did ride.”
   
Gal finished fourth overall (79.07%).
   
However Laurens van Lieren was not pleased with his test aboard Hexagon’s Ollright.  The big chestnut broke to canter in the first extended trot, and then was spooked in the second extended trot when someone dropped a tray of glassware in the VIP section of the stands.
   
The young Dutchman glared angrily up into the audience, perhaps overdramatizing the effect of the sound to make it clear to the judges that this second mistake wasn’t his fault.  The management apologized to him afterwards, but the riders agreed that these accidents were beyond anyone’s control.

Final Results
“A” Final
1.    Keltec Salinero, Anky van Grunsven (NED) 87.75%
2.    Warum Nicht FRH, Isabell Werth (GER) 81.15%
3.    Bjorsells Briar, Jan Brink (SWE) 79.32%
4.    Group 4 Securicor Lingh, Edward Gal (NED) 79.07%
5.    Sunrise, Imke Schellekens-Bartels (NED) 76.92%
6.    Wahajama-Unicef, Ann Kathrin Linsenhoff (GER) 76.75%
7.    Hexagon’s Ollright, Laurens van Lieren (NED) 75.30%
8.    Guinness 888, Louise Nathhorst (SWE) (73.80%)
9.    Hardhof’s Ludewig G, Lone Jorgensen (DEN) 72.70%
10.    Paganini, Jeroen Devroe (BEL) 71.05%
11.    Donatha S, Ellen Schulten-Baumer (GER) 70.37%
12.    Wild One, Arlene Page (USA) 69.65%

“B” Final
1.    Douglas Dorsey, Laura Bechtolsheimer (GBR) 73.53%
2.    Tip Top 962, Leslie Morse (USA) 71.45%
3.    Wilson, Kristian von Krusenstierna (SWE) 71.20%
4.    Royal Black Label, Elena Kalinina (RUS) 70.95%
5.    Proton, Cindy Ishoy (CAN) 67.52%
6.    Zorro, Inessa Poturaeva (RUS) 64.92%