The news that Ireland’s Darragh Kenny will no longer compete the brilliant string of horses owned by America’s Ann Thompson sent a shudder through the sport today. The 32-year-old Offaly native has risen to the no. 7 spot in the Longines World Rankings, thanks in no small part to the…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes Fantastic performances from the next generation of Dressage superstars A fabulous Freestyle finale brought the third and last week of the FEI Dressage European Youth Championships 2020 drew to a close at Pilisjàszfalu in Hungary today, with Germany’s Lucie-Anouk Baumgürtel the runaway star of…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes Dutch take four of the six titles on offer If the stunning Freestyle performances that brought week 2 of the FEI Dressage European Youth Championships 2020 to a close at Pilisjàszfalu in Hungary today are anything to go by, then the future of European…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes Clean sweep of gold and plenty of drama It wasn’t the biggest surprise when Team Germany dominated the first week of the FEI Dressage European Youth Championships 2020 which drew to a close at Pilisjàszfalu in Hungary today. But plenty of drama accompanied their…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes Mexican showjumper, Federico Fernandez, had just arrived in Madrid (ESP) by train when I spoke with him last week. He was en route to a business meeting and had intended travelling by air from Valencia (ESP), but the flight was cancelled at the last…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release It sounded like he was being dive-bombed by sea-planes when I spoke with Pedro Cebulka last week. “That’s another one coming over now”, he’d say with a laugh as our conversation about his life and times had to be put on hold again and again. He and…
Continue ReadingTalking Horses – FEI Press Release by Louise Parkes Not too many people have been to 17 Olympic Games in their lifetime, but retired British journalist Alan Smith most certainly has. In a career that spanned 48 years he reported on no less than nine Summer and eight Winter Games…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes The birds were singing so loudly in the background that I thought Lucia Montanarella was out in the countryside when I called her last week. She wasn’t though, she was in her apartment in the city of Lausanne, Switzerland where she has been based…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release by Louise Parkes When I called David Broome last Tuesday he had been haymaking at Mount Ballan Manor near Chepstow in South Wales which, apart from being the family farm, is also home to the hugely popular Wales and West showgrounds. The legendary British showjumping rider is…
Continue ReadingFEI Press Release On his debut as a roving reporter, Shetland social media influencer Beachboy Jasper visits Carl Hester’s yard in Gloucestershire, England where he gets the lowdown on some of the inmates. His timing isn’t perfect because the big names have just gone hacking in the morning sunshine. But…
Continue Reading