Currently residing in Germany, Canadian Pia Fortmuller was the top-placed Canadian at the prestigious FEI World Breeding Dressage Championships for Young Horses, which took place July 28 through 31 at the Dutch Equestrian Federation headquarters in Ermelo, Netherlands.
Riding Frieda (Fürstenball x Rouletto), a five-year-old Hanoverian mare she co-owns with Lars Busch, Fortmuller put in an impressive showing in the Small Final for Five-Year-Old Horses, wowing the crowd of more than 20,000 spectators.
“We’re very proud and excited about Frieda’s results at the World Breeding Dressage Championships,” said Fortmuller. “On the first day in the preliminary Frieda was a bit intimidated in such an impressive atmosphere, but then on the second day we danced confidently down the centre line and performed out best test ever. What we’re most excited about is that during this Championship Frieda showed us another glimpse of her incredible potential for the future.”
The talented duo earned a remarkable score of 80.20% from the esteemed panel of international judges, good enough for a sixth-place finish. They scored an 8.6 for the trot, 7.9 for the walk, 8.0 for the canter and perspective, and 7.6 for submission.
Hometown favourite Jeanine Nieuwenhuis of the Netherlands rode Great Lady TC to the win with their mark of 83.80%. Denmark’s Carina Cassøe and Heiline’s Danciera finished second with 83.60%, while Claudia Rüscher of Germany aboard Baccardi earned third with a mark of 83.00%.
Designed to highlight new and developing talent, the FEI World Breeding Dressage Championships for Young Horses has produced numerous future stars, including the world-famous stallion Sandro Hit and numerous previous Olympic Games participants, including Painted Black, Uzzo, and Damon Hill.
For more information and complete results, please visit www.ermeloyh.com.
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