Kenki Sato and Chippieh
If you remember Kenki Sato and Chippieh’s dressage test from the London Olympics last year, you won’t be surprised that they’re leading at Boekelo at the conclusion of day 1 of dressage. This 11-year-old Holsteiner gelding has a lovely partnership with Kenki, who I’ve never before had the pleasure of seeing ride in person. Kenki just returned to Europe from Japan, where he’s been competing on the jumping circuit there. In addition to being competitive at the highest levels of show jumping, Kenki really is an incredibly talented dressage rider, and it could have something to do with the fact that he’s trained extensively with Michael Jung in recent years. His test was good enough today to just edge Ze Terminator on a score of 38.2, and he became the third rider to crack the 30s.
Andreas Dibowski and It's Me xx
It’s worth noting that two of Michael’s students — Kenki and Felix Vogg — join him in the top four of the dressage standings here at Boekelo. Considering this year’s Badminton and Burghley winner Jock Paget — who’s notably absent from the competition here at Boekelo this weekend — also trained with Michael last winter, I have to imagine Ze Terminator has a waiting list of riders eager to learn from the best in the world. Michael led his team to the early lead in the Grolsch Nations Cup after the first day of dressage, and the Germans currently hold first place in the team standings on a score of 82.6. France follows in second place with a score of 96.2, with Australia holding third on a 95.6.
Ellen Svennerstal and Southway
We’ve dodged the rainy weather forecast for the past two days at Boekelo, but the skies opened up when poor Albert Hermoso Farr was preparing to start his test on Yasmina V as the last ride of the day. Of course, that’s not preventing the party from continuing on, and I can hear a heavy base line thumping next door to the press tent. The Dutch know how to watch an event — with a beer (Grolsch, of course!) in hand and good music. Also, I’ve just discovered that there’s an excellent live stream of the event available on the Boekelo website. I tested it today, and it seems to be working beautifully, so be sure to tune in tomorrow for day 2 of dressage. That wraps up my coverage for today. Go Boekelo!
Boekelo Links: [Homepage] [Order Of Go] [Results] [Boekelo TV] [Live Stream]
