It was no surprise that the Germans fielded an unbeatable dressage team on their home turf for the FEI World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Aug. 22-26. Nor was the Dutch team silver medal unexpected, but the bronze medal win for the United States was no lock when the team competition began.

Injuries kept some of the top U.S. horses at home, while nations like Sweden and Denmark appeared strong and hungry for that third spot.

But veterans Debbie McDonald on Brentina, Steffen Peters on Floriano and Guenter Seidel on Aragon put in some of their best performances to date, while Leslie Morse gained valuable experience for her rising star, Tip Top.

Although Peters was the alternate for the U.S. team for the 2004 Athens Olympics, it wasn’t until the Aachen CHIO (Germany) last summer that the pair became a serious threat. They finished eighth individually and helped the U.S. team win bronze.

Floriano looked even stronger at the team selection trials, and then fulfilled Peters’ highest hopes by performing his best yet at the WEG.

“It’s so nice to have one of the rides of my life at just the right moment,” said Peters. “At my last halt, that’s when I let myself think that it had been that good.”

Peters had the high score for the team (72.70%) with McDonald and Brentina right behind him (71.41%).

McDonald campaigned the 15-year-old, Hanoverian mare (by Brentano) lightly before the WEG in an attempt to keep her sound, healthy and fresh for the competition.

That strategy paid off, and they rode a steady, harmonious test, although Brentina did throw a one-tempi change into her line of two-tempis. “I wouldn’t put it on the list of my best performances, but it was good enough to help the team get bronze, so I’m very happy,” McDonald said.

Sadly, the Grand Prix would be Brentina’s only test as she wasn’t completely sound when she finished.

“In the first extended trot I thought I might have felt something,” said McDonald. “I knew I had a job to do to secure the bronze medal and get us a spot in the [2008] Olympics. I tried to stay focused and not overdo it.”

But on the final extended trot, she knew she felt something wrong. “Being the mare she is, she still came down the centerline with all her vim and vigor,” said McDonald.

She decided to withdraw the mare after finding swelling in her right hind leg. “Our first concern is her, and we’re hoping to get it resolved soon,” she continued. “We don’t know exactly what it is yet, but I’m hoping it won’t be too serious. It would be wonderful to do another World Cup Final in the Thomas & Mack Arena in Las Vegas [in 2007]. Her desire to compete is still strong.”

Two years ago, Aragon joined Brentina on the Olympic team, and the future looked bright for the talented Grand Prix horse, but tension and physical issues impeded his progress.

Seidel is no rookie though, and he carefully prepped the 14-year-old Bavarian Warmblood (by Abydos) to peak at these Games.

“Aragon has really improved in the past three weeks,” said Seidel. “I was training him with this competition in mind, so he wasn’t as fit as he could have been at [the selection trials in June]. Being here, and having Klaus [Balkenhol] help has really helped develop Aragon and made him stronger. He feels great here.”

Their score (69.79%) proved good enough for the United States to earn bronze on a total score of 213.91 points, 5 points ahead of Denmark and Sweden. It also was enough to qualify Seidel for the Grand Prix Special (the top 30 qualified). Aragon improved in the Special and placed 14th (70.56%), which in turn qualified him for the freestyle where they ended up 13th (72.50%).

While Morse was the drop score for the U.S. team with Tip Top 962, she was more than proud of her 12-year-old, Swedish Warmblood stallion (by Master).

The pair started off their test strong, scoring 7s and 8s, but big mistakes in the one-tempis and canter pirouettes brought their score down (64.25%).

“I have to say that even with the mistakes, he lived up to, and exceeded, my expectations,” said Morse. “He was so proud of himself in there. He really puffed up and said, ‘I’m in the big leagues now.’ But he also got a little bit overwhelmed by it all. He really showed what his heart is, and what he’ll be with more mileage.”

Endless Depth
The German team victory proved just how deep that nation’s dressage talent runs. The team was named after the German Championships in July, but then injuries plagued Klaus Husenbeth’s Piccolino and he was replaced with Hubertus Schmidt and Wansuela Suerte. Then, just a few days before the Games began, Isabell Werth’s mount Warum Nicht sustained a minor injury, and she had to take her talented but unpredictable Satchmo instead.

Yet the Germans never faltered. While Schmidt did not score as highly as he would have liked, Heike Kemmer more than made up for it on the first day by scoring 75.79 percent with Bonaparte, a 13-year-old, Hanoverian gelding (by Warkant).

Then Nadine Capellmann, the 2002 World Champion with Farbenfroh, put in an elegant test aboard Elvis VA, her 10-year-old, Hanoverian gelding (by Espri) to score 72.83 percent. Finally, Werth proved that Satchmo has grown up by riding a safe, but foot-perfect test (75.00%). She smiled ear-to-ear after completing her one-tempi changes without a hitch.

Although the Dutch were able to move ahead of Germany last year at the Aachen CHIO, they couldn’t repeat their coup this time. Anky van Grunsven scored 75.00 percent with Keltec Salinero after some surprising mistakes, like picking up the wrong canter lead from the passage and missing her last change in the two-tempis.

“Of course we’re disappointed. They usually score 77 or 78 percent in the Grand Prix. But those were big mistakes,” said Sjef Janssen, van Grunsven’s husband and coach. “Salinero was very relaxed, and we think almost too relaxed because that can cause problems. They both lost a little bit of concentration.”

Van Grunsven admitted, “I really had the feeling that I was the problem in the Grand Prix. I think I made too many mistakes, and he was in good shape.”

Laurens van Lieren was also disappointed with his test aboard Hexagon’s Ollright, although he blamed a steward’s mistake for disrupting his warm-up. He was sent back to the stable to change his saddle pad after the steward mistook his team sponsor’s logo for a personal sponsor. (No personal sponsor logos are allowed at FEI championships.)

“It cost me 15 minutes. Normally, I have a 45-minute warm-up, and this time I had to go directly to [the final warm-up area],” said van Lieren. “In the test I felt my horse was a bit hot and not as relaxed as he could be, and we lost points.”

Edward Gal was the last rider in the Grand Prix, and he would have needed to score more than 77 percent with Group 4 Securicor Lingh to put the Dutch in gold medal position. “Yes, I thought that would be easy,” Gal joked. “I was going for an 80 percent, but I didn’t get it! But I was secure knowing that we had the silver medal.”

Only Imke Schellekens-Bartels exceeded expectations for the team, scoring 71.54 percent with Sunrise, a 12-year-old, Hano-verian mare (by Rubiquil).

Peters Puts In A Personal Best
While the team medals were predictable, the individual placings provided the audience with a good deal of suspense. One of the most exciting developments for the United States was Peters’ incredible finish in the Grand Prix Special with Floriano.

He rode the 16-year-old, Westphalian (by Florestan I) in the second-to-last group, and the test was beautiful. The audience roared its approval, and many U.S. fans were crying when they finished because of the amazing trust, precision and harmony they showed.

Floriano doesn’t have the strongest piaffe and passage, but his extended gaits and pirouettes are fantastic. No other horse showed an extended walk so relaxed, regular and forward.

“For a horse that’s 16 years old and still has that much power and is so driven to do it with that much energy and that much expression is phenomenal,” said Peters through tears after his ride. “I came into the pirouettes and gave an aid to start the movement and afterwards I left him alone. He kept telling me, ‘I know what I’m doing. Just let me do my job.’ It was the same in the half-passes, both canter and trot. It just shows how much Floriano still wants to do it, and that’s what I’m taking home from here.”

The pair scored 75.20 percent and took over the lead, but it wasn’t quite good enough for the individual bronze in the end. Satchmo and Salinero were both at their best, moving into first and second places, respectively. And while Andreas Helgstrand had a few mistakes with Blue Hors Matine, the raw talent of the young mare was just enough to edge Peters out of the medals.

“The Special was definitely my favorite test,” said Peters. “When Andreas had a couple of fumbles in the extended trot, the average score was dropping below mine, and my heart really started pounding. I thought maybe there is a chance. But I think that’s very fair sportsmanship to say that if you have a chance, then you certainly hope it’s going to happen. Even after the test when it didn’t happen, that was still perfectly fine.”

Peters was the last rider to go in the freestyle, but the lights and electric night atmosphere proved too much for a repeat performance from the Special.

“I had to ride a little more carefully,” he said. “Floriano was on the edge the whole time. I took it a little bit easy in the trot extensions. In the canter pirouettes I couldn’t quite ride him as much as I’d like to. I had to be very diplomatic and a little bit careful. But he still did a wonderful job, and I’m very happy with a 78. What he did for the team and in the Special last night–that was his job. We came in tonight, tried our very best and had a lot of fun.”

New Talent Rises
Peters wasn’t the only one to ride his best test at the WEG. For the past two years van Grunsven and Salinero have been hard to beat, but Werth and Helgstrand demonstrated that it’s not impossible.

Satchmo has been Werth’s problem child for some time. No one doubted his talent, but Werth couldn’t seem to ride a test without a major blow-up in the ring.

“The career of Satchmo was quite strange,” said Werth. “He started very well, and then there was a year with big problems and a lot of escalations. We couldn’t find the right solution at that time, but I think we found the problem, and now he has his confidence back.

“When I told my parents [that she would take Satchmo instead of Warum Nicht], my father said it was fate,” added Werth. “I know that this horse had this high potential. He’s the best horse I’ve ever ridden. I always believed in him, and now the time is here.”

Their time came in the Grand Prix Special when Werth was able to take risks and show Satchmo’s capabilities.

“Today I could ride for myself, not for the team,” she said. “It was unbelievable today with Satchmo in this atmosphere that he had his best test he ever showed. Everything worked. I don’t know of any mistake. It was such a great feeling, I can’t tell you.”

They scored 79.48 percent to win the individual gold medal in the Special over van Grunsven and Salinero (77.80%). This is a new format for individual medals in World Championship dressage. (See sidebar).

Werth encountered the same difficulties as Peters under the floodlights for the freestyle with 48,000 spectators filling the stands.

“Satchmo was a bit more tense,” she said. “My goal was to keep him with me. It was a bit difficult for him in the floodlights. But I expected it, and I really have to say that I had my final yesterday. Today it was my big goal to show a good test and to keep him as quiet as possible because it’s a bit too early to go in there with such an atmosphere with the kur with him. It was a great atmosphere, it was exciting competition and I’m so happy about my bronze medal.”

Werth knew that Satchmo had it in him to be a World Champion, but Helgstrand was just as surprised as the audience to find himself in the top three after every test with Blue Hors Matine.

He too was planning to ride another horse, Blue Hors Don Schufro, but again injury forced a change of plans, and he ended up riding the young and incredibly talented Matine on the Danish team.

The gray, Dutch Warmblood mare (by Blue Hors Silver Moon) is only 9 years old, and last year she wasn’t scoring more than 66 percent. But Matine spent the winter in intensive training with Helgstrand under Rudolf Zeilinger’s eye, and the difference was impressive.

The mare is green, so at times the atmosphere got to her, but her talent for piaffe and passage was unreal. She seemed to defy gravity as she bounced off the ground, winning the Grand Prix test (76.33%), placing third in the Special (75.20%) and earning silver in the freestyle (81.50%).

“I wouldn’t have believed this a week ago,” said Helgstrand. “I came here with a very young horse. Matine was quite hot in the beginning when I started with her. So I used a lot of time to bring her under the seat all the time. She has very good talent for difficult things. The passage, the piaffe, they’re not difficult for her, so I have to train with more basic things. I think that is why she is so far along, so young.”

Van Grunsven Collects Freestyle Gold
Van Grunsven arrived at the WEG as the favorite to win all three Grand Prix tests with Salinero, but it was an odd week for her, ending much better than it started.

It wasn’t enough that the pair had uncharacteristic mistakes in the Grand Prix, but then Salinero ran away with her in the honor round. She screamed and pulled as he galloped out of the stadium, and she was lucky to find two police horses to help her stop him.

“After the prize giving we both were very shocked about what happened,” said van Grunsven. “When we tacked Salinero up the next time, he was shaking all over because he thought something was really wrong. With the riding he was OK, and then, luckily, we could go into the main arena, and he felt really confident in the arena again, so I had a good feeling about that. I really think that he’s clever enough to understand that in the arena that’s where he feels safe, and that’s where he does his test and has the confidence in me.”

Their Special was much improved, but then Werth went all out and beat them. “I was really happy when I came out of my test in the Grand Prix Special,” said van Grunsven. “I didn’t think that I could do anymore. Isabell [Werth] beat me, and I think that the sport should be that exciting. It’s boring if you know before who’s going to win.”

But the freestyle is van Grunsven’s favorite test, and she came out on top (86.10%) with all five judges placing her first.

“It’s good to start with the downs and end up with the ups,” said van Grunsven. “I’ve been very happy with my horse the whole week. It’s really a dream that came true to come to the World Championship, because I think that it’s an unbelievable atmosphere, and I think that dressage is much bigger than people think.”

Van Grunsven also made two announcements after her individual gold medal in the freestyle. The first is that she will change her freestyle music after this WEG. The music, composed by Cees Slings and Victor Kerkhof, helped her win individual gold at the 2004 Olympics and the following World Cup Finals.

“I hope the new one brings good luck as well,” she said. “I don’t know yet what I’ll do. I was thinking about things [before the WEG], but it didn’t work out. So we decided to forget about it and start all over after the World Games.”

Her second announcement was that she’s pregnant with her second child. She won her Olympic medal while pregnant with her first child, Yannick Janssen, and this child is due in March.

Are More Medals Better?
The dressage competition at the World Equestrian Games this year featured a different format for the individual medals from years past. No overall individual winner was named, but instead two riders took home individual gold medals. Scores from the Grand Prix test were used to determine the top 30, and then those riders started the Grand Prix Special from scratch.

The top three in the Special were awarded medals, and then the top 15 started from zero again in the freestyle. Although there were separate medals for each test at the WEG in The Hague in ’94, this was the first year where the riders could compete in both tests instead of having to choose between them.

“I think that there were lots of arguments for it,” said Mariette Withages, chairman of the FEI Dressage Committee. “It’s more competitive because you start from scratch. You cannot say, ‘Oh, I have 2 percent more, and I’ll go on the safe side.’ No, every competition that you start, you have to ride. It’s a better sport, and there is more real competition in each. The other good side of it is that now everybody understands that the Grand Prix Special gets its proper value. Before, it was just a qualification. And there wasn’t even a prize-giving for it.”

The riders seemed to like the new format, although they admitted to having doubts at first. “It’s very exciting every day because everybody starts with a scratch score,” said Anky van Grunsven. “You have to do it again and again, and it puts more pressure on everybody and gives more chances to everybody as well.”

The downside is that consistency isn’t rewarded. And isn’t a greater test of horse and rider to have three good tests instead of one brilliant one? Also, if more medals make everyone happy, then why not award individual medals after the Grand Prix test as well? Andreas Helgstrand won the Grand Prix, but he didn’t receive a gold medal for his victory.

It’s too late to use this new format at the 2008 Olympics, but it may become the standard for championships thereafter.