Outside of the arena, the pressure was on Dutch anchor rider Marlies van Baalen as she began her CDIO5* Grand Prix test with Habibi DVB, as her score would determine the outcome of the FEI Dressage Nations Cup™.
But inside the arena, van Baalen had her focus elsewhere.
“For me, it was a great test. I had no idea where we were in the competition or what score I needed to get [for us to win]. I was just focused on my horse and on the test.
“We all know that Rotterdam is a super nice competition with the arena, but it’s not always the easiest for the horses. I was very happy that Habibi was super focused today and relaxed,” van Baalen continued. “I could ride a very steady test, which was enough.”
Van Baalen and Habibi’s 71.957% score secured a narrow victory for The Netherlands. Led by Chef d’Equipe Patrick van der Meer, the four-rider squad of van Baalen, Thamar Zweistra (Hexagons Luxuriouzz N.O.P.T.), Marieke van der Putten (Kuvasz RS2 N.O.P.T.), and Hans Peter Minderhoud (Glock’s Taminiau) finished on a total score of 215.587, less than a half-point ahead of Great Britain (215.152). Belgium finished third (205.609). The Netherlands was the only team to have all of its riders score above 70 percent, an impressive feat considering that three of the team’s horses are aged 10 or younger.
“I have to say, we have three kind of inexperienced horses here, so they really did a good job, but they also learned good things,” van der Meer said. “I think it’s really important that when we ride with an audience like this, that the horses are able to relax enough, and that they can get good experience, and I think they really did a good job and managed it well.”
Minderhoud was the team’s highest scoring rider, earning a 72.739% for his test with the 10-year-old stallion Glock’s Taminiau. The mark neared a personal best for the combination as they finished second individually.
“This horse hasn’t done a lot of big competitions, and I think this was the biggest arena he’s seen in his life so far,” Minderhoud shared. “The first part [of the test], he was looking a little bit at everything, but then he went really well. He’s a young horse and he hasn’t seen a lot in his life until now, and he was really good.”
Great Britain put up a strong fight, with Lottie Fry (GBR) bringing forward her World Champion and Olympic bronze medal-winning partner Glamourdale for the first time since winning April’s FEI Dressage World Cup™ Final (SUI). The pair put up the highest marks of the day to put their team in contention, scoring 75.109%, though mistakes down the center line of pirouettes brought their score down below their average.
“I have to say, it was such an amazing test and such an amazing feeling,” Fry said. “We were really working as one in the arena, and everything I asked, he gave. He was just incredible. Unfortunately, there was quite a big misunderstanding, which we didn’t get back from very easily, so two very expensive marks there, but apart from that I was so happy coming out [of the arena] because of the feeling he gave, and he was so happy to be doing it. He was really excited, and you don’t need more than that.”
For van der Meer, his team accomplished two goals: a win on home soil and successful exposure to a big atmosphere for horses and riders with championship promise.
“Winning is always nice, especially in Rotterdam, our home country, and this competition is an amazing show with the Nations Cup. I’m really proud of my riders and all the horses,” he said. “This is a really good start also for the next wave we have to get up to the European Championships (ESP) and the World Championships (GER) next year.”
The 15 points earned by the Dutch catapulted them to the top of the FEI Dressage Nations Cup™ series leaderboard; they now share the lead with Germany on 35 points. Great Britain sits third with 24 points. The series resumes with its penultimate leg at Aachen (GER) on 03 July 2025.
Full results here.
More News
