At a Crossroads

A final salute to the 2012 Olympics: Adrienne Lyle and Wizard of Team USA. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

If an Olympic Games and a Paralympic Games are as wonderful as the ones in London 2012, their conclusion brings a bit of wistful sadness. It's hard to see something so special come to an end.

As joyous as the performances and as thrilling as Great Britain's hard-earned victories were, many US dressage fans are feeling more down in the dumps than usual. After having won team bronze from 1992 to 2004, we'd become accustomed to our status as dressage medalists. But London was the second Olympics in a row to leave the American dressage team off the podium.

Depending on whom you ask, the medal-less status is anything from a nonissue to a crisis. Some argue, reasonably, that any horse and rider can have an off day, and that failure to medal in such exalted company is no reason to hang one's head in shame. After all, those in London had made it to the Olympics -- no easy feat!

Others perceive that, at the high-performance level, as it's called, competition is a big-stakes affair. Medals, and the promise of more medals to come, help lure donors and sponsors. Or to put it more bluntly, people tend to back a winning team but few want to back a loser. To further complicate matters, by not medaling, a nation must qualify to participate in a future Olympics, meaning that we need to fight to get in the game for Rio 2016.

The question that many are asking is: Why did the US not medal, and what can we do about it?

The consensus seems to be that, although American riders are top-notch, our crop of horses, at least at the time of the London Games, was outclassed, eclipsed by a new breed of superhorses (Exhibit A: Valegro). So the solution to the problem would seem to be: Buy Valegro or horses of his quality, or breed a Valegro or horses of that quality.

In the months and years to come, we shall see whether our rising stars -- Wizard, Paragon, Legolas, Pikko del Cerro HU, and others -- are of that caliber. And I have a feeling that sales of top dressage horses will engender even more scrutiny than in the past, now that we see how assembling a dressage dream team of horseflesh vaulted Team GB from pretty much nowhere to Olympic gold in a short four years or so.

Great Britain's lottery helped to fund its equestrian teams. In the US, we depend largely on the largesse of private sponsor/owners. But presumably even wealthy patrons don't have unlimited resources. Can American dressage find the necessary funding? Should doing so be the priority of those who govern our sport? These are not easy questions to answer. The only thing I'm willing to bank on at this point is that these issues will receive a lot of attention and debate over the next four years.

Team USA: Relaxed and Ready to Go

Jan Ebeling, Tina Konyot, Adrienne Lyle, and Steffen Peters were all smiles at the pre-competition press conference. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

"Fun" isn't always a word associated with a press conference, but that's the word journalists were using to describe yesterday's pre-competition meeting with the 2012 US Olympic dressage team.

"That rider, Tina, she's a hoot," said one foreign journalist, referring to Tina Konyot's frank admission that she eschews regimented exercise programs in favor of "retail therapy," as she called it.

"'Oh, honey, don't do anything different,'" Konyot said her boyfriend told her after learning that there was a fitness program at the riders' training camp in England. "'Just go shopping.'"

The four riders appeared relaxed and to genuinely enjoy one another's company. Konyot would rib Peters, who would rib Konyot right back. (Asked if Peters, the Olympic veteran, was helping to keep the others' nerves at bay, Konyot quipped: "He's trying to keep me from getting any looser than I already am.")

 Jan Ebeling, seemingly unfazed by the mainstream-media spotlight trained on him thanks to Ann Romney's part-ownership of his Olympic horse, Rafalca, said he's welcomed the attention and has been trying to use it to raise awareness of the sport of dressage--that it's not just "riders trotting in circles," as he put it. Even Lyle, the youngest member of Team USA and the newest to the international scene, seemed at ease.

One can assume that the competitors wouldn't be this relaxed if they felt shaky about their upcoming performances, which begin today with the team and individual Grand Prix. And indeed all expressed confidence that their horses are going well--Konyot said Calecto V is the best he's ever been--and that their careful preparation and that of US national dressage high-performance coach Anne Gribbons has the horses peaking just at the right time.

"We showed at Aachen last year, then showed at the selection trials on the West Coast," Peters said of his mount, Ravel, "We did the World Dressage Masters in January, but I didn’t believe that the horse could stay in top shape for eight months, so he had a little break in April and May. Since then he's been great. We picked up the training a little more since he arrived in Gladstone, right after the championships. I have a very fresh horse. Today I did an extended canter and he was bucking a little bit. That's the Ravel that I had for the World Cup in 2007. That's the Ravel I had before Aachen in 2009. I'm excited that he feels this way, and I can't wait to go down center line."

The US has definitely created an "American way" of dressage, and Peters expressed pride in our reputation for horsemanship.

"We got so many wonderful compliments when we trained with [previous US national dressage coach] Klaus Balkenhol, that the American team is known for true kindness to the horse, and it's [training] always done with the most respect. To me, being competitive and on top of that hearing those compliments means the world to me."

It didn't take much prodding to get the riders to open up about their horses. Ebeling said of Rafalca: "She comes out every day and tries her best. That's what I love about her. I feel she's a horse that I can really depend on, and the effect she has on me is she makes me very calm. Of course there's a lot of pressure--this is the biggest horse show in the world--but she makes me feel, Hey, I can relax."

"He has a magnificent, sweet character," Konyot said of the stallion Calecto V. "He's a very unusual character for a stallion. He's very relaxed. They make fun of him in the stable because he sleeps all stretched out. He stretches out and gallops in his sleep. He dreams. He travels with his big teddy bear, and he plays with him in his stall. He's my pet horse that I get to take to the Olympics."

Lyle called her seven-year partnership with Wizard "an amazing journey. He's kind of a hot-tempered horse. He's a little stand-offish when you first get to know him. It's been a journey, earning his trust. He kind of has to size you up first, and you have to earn his respect. Now he's kind of my old best friend. I can read exactly what he's thinking before it happens, like, 'Oh, I know what that ear twitch means and I've got to get ahead of it and reassure him.' 

"Now he's kind of a one-woman horse," Lyle continued. "He gets mad if I lead another horse by at home; he'll pin his ears and get angry. Someone else can lead a horse by, but not his mom."

"There are two sides of Ravel," Peters said. "When we deal with him in the barn, if you dare to walk by without giving him a treat, he reacts very grumpy. He pins his ears; he doesn't do anything, he doesn't bite or kick, but there's just a lot of entitlement. We spoil him and we certainly reinforce this," he said with a smile. 

"As soon as he has his halter on, his groom, Dawn White-O'Connor, doesn't need to tie him anywhere; he ground-ties," Peters continued. Ravel also feels entitled to daily scratching sessions from Peters and will actually block the stall doorway if he doesn't feel he's received sufficient ministration, Peters said.

Peters described Ravel as a horse that likes to be "a bit by himself. He doesn't like to be with too many other horses. But as grumpy as he can be in the barn, he's so extremely generous under saddle. So sensitive, still at fourteen years old, I don't get the feeling that he doesn't want to do it or that he gets a little lazy. It's an incredible feeling, and on top of that that amazing suppleness. He's just a blast to ride. I've said many times that I feel extremely lucky to ride him."

Luck, of course, plays a role in getting to the Olympics; but as Ebeling pointed out, hard work is the driving force behind these riders' success. We're proud of them; we thank them for sharing their special bonds with their horses; and we wish them good luck and can't wait for the Grand Prix, which starts just a few hours from now, at 11:00 a.m. London time!

The Dressage Team Is Coming!

Today was the 2012 US Olympic dressage team's last day at Layham Hall, their pre-London training base in England. As I write this, riders Steffen Peters, Tina Konyot, Jan Ebeling, and Adrienne Lyle are standing backstage somewhere at the Olympic stadium, waiting to march in with the rest of Team USA.

US Equestrian Federation national dressage technical advisor and coach Anne Gribbons won't be there tonight; she's stayed behind until after Ravel, Calecto V, Rafalca, and Wizard depart tomorrow for Greenwich Park. Meanwhile, she sent me this report:

"All horses/riders doing well. They have their last work sessions this morning and then head into London for Opening Ceremony. I am staying behind and going after the horses leave Saturday morning. 

Team USA: Steffen Peters, Adrienne Lyle, Anne Gribbons, Tina Konyot, and Jan Ebeling at their English training base outside London (during a rare non-rainy moment). Photo courtesy of Anne Gribbons.

"The horses arrived in top shape due to a direct and smooth flight with minimal road travel. 

Training camp has gone smoothly, and the team spirit is great. We have been housed at the most wonderful facility owned by Linda and Jack Keenan, and they have been the most fantastic hosts. No wish was unfulfilled, the horses loved the ambiance with rolling hills and mares and foals in the pastures. Calecto and Paragon have had their own turnout fields and all our horses are in the same cosy barn. 

Traveling reserve rider Heather Blitz preps Paragon for a show. Photo courtesy of Anne Gribbons.

"Dr. Mitchell [US dressage-team veterinarian Rick Mitchell, DVM] is here full time to pamper our equines, the grooms are a wonderful group who take excellent care of the horses and have a very good time together, and the staff is on top of scheduling and organizing our daily lives and  progress from one venue to another. Every horse / rider combination has been working diligently on polishing their act, and I ran them through two show dress rehearsals  with video sessions last week. The youngsters, Legolas and Paragon, have both benefited from the program as well, and they look very promising for future teams.

At team processing

"We went to team processing a few days ago and received an abundance of clothing and gifts, which made the grooms giggle even more, and the riders got a first look at London and we all realized we really are going to the Olympics!"

Many thanks to Anne for taking time out of her busy schedule to keep the US dressage fans updated! 

Cheerio from London! Tomorrow I hope to see all our riders at the US dressage-team press conference. Now I'm signing off to continue live-streaming the Olympic opening ceremony (no, I couldn't get a ticket). But I do have a photo source, so I hope to share a photo of our riders with you tomorrow.

Your Guide to the Games

Follow me to Greenwich Park: Line of traffic inches through the town of Greenwich near the 2012 Olympic equestrian venue. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Greetings from London! The 2012 Olympic Games commence tomorrow with the opening ceremony. Are you ready?

Some of you have been asking how to watch the equestrian competition. First off, no, it won't be broadcast on the US Equestrian Federation streaming network (NBC controls all US broadcast rights). And no, don't expect to see lots of equestrian coverage on your local NBC TV network, although NBC will be broadcasting the opening ceremony, which begins at 9:00 p.m. London time on Friday, July 27. (London is five hours ahead of the Eastern time zone.)

Fortunately, for the first time ever, NBC Universal and its Comcast subsidiary will be live-streaming all 32 Olympic summer sports. It's free, but you need to register and get your account set up in advance. (You also need access to an Internet-enabled computer, laptop, or mobile device.) USDF members, I detailed the process in the July/August issue of USDF Connection. If you missed that issue, here's what you need to do.

Verify your eligibility. Registrants for the live-streaming service must be current subscribers in good standing to a pay-TV service (cable, satellite, or "telco") that carries the channels MSNBC and CNBC. Gather your provider name and account number, and then:

Go to NBCOlympics.com. Click on the "Live Extra" link (the "Click Here & Get Ready" red button on the home page). Follow the steps for selecting your TV provider, registering your account, and creating a login. NBC promises that then all you'll have to do is log in before your desired competition starts, select it, and enjoy.

For tablets and smartphones. The NBCOlympics Live Extra app will enable you to live-stream Olympic coverage to your Internet-enabled mobile device. Download the appropriate app and follow the instructions to set up access.

Coverage minus streaming. NBCOlympics.com's "On the Go" page is also the download source for the NBC Olympics mobile website and mobile apps. Use these as your mobile guide to schedules, news, results, and coverage listings. You'll also be able to access selected Olympics photos and video.

Equestrian Competition Schedule

You'll have to get up early to catch some of these live, although replay will be available on the NBC Olympics site, according to the "Live Extra" usage instructions.

The three Olympic equestrian disciplines (eventing, dressage, and jumping, scheduled in that order) overlap one another a bit on the calendar, although competition never runs concurrently. Times given are London local time. Schedule source: FEI.

Eventing

July 27: First horse inspection, 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.

July 28: Team and individual dressage, 10:00 a.m.-4:45 p.m.

July 29: Team and individual dressage, 10:00 a.m.-4:45 p.m.

July 30: Cross-country, 12:30 p.m.-5:40 p.m.

July 31: Second horse inspection, 8:15 a.m.-9:30 a.m.

              Team final jumping: 10:30 a.m.-1:10 p.m.

               Individual final jumping: 2:30 p.m.-3:35 p.m.

Dressage

July 31: Horse inspection, 5:30 p.m.-7:00 p.m.

August 2: FEI Grand Prix, 11:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

August 3: FEI Grand Prix, 11:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

August 7: Olympic Grand Prix Special (team medal final), 10:00 a.m.-4:25 p.m.

August 9: FEI Grand Prix Freestyle (individual medal final): 12:30 p.m.-4:00 p.m.

Jumping

August 2: First horse inspection, 5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.

August 4: First qualifier, 10:30 a.m.-2:05 p.m.

August 5: Second individual qualifier/team competition round 1, 11:00 a.m.-2:15 p.m.

August 6: Third individual qualifier/team medal final, 2:00 p.m.-4:45 p.m.

August 8:  Second horse inspection, 9:30 a.m.-10:15 a.m.

                  Individual round A, 12:00 p.m.-1:30 p.m.

                  Individual round B/individual medal final, 2:45 p.m.-4:05 p.m.

Happy viewing! We equestrian-media folks are prepping our cameras for tomorrow's first eventing horse inspection. I'll post news and photos tomorrow. Cheerio from London!

A Different Kind of Equestrian Royalty

When dressage enthusiasts wish to disparage a horse and rider for performing movements as "tricks" instead of from a foundation of correct basics, they call it "circus riding."

You might not want to use that phrase around Tina Konyot.

Konyot, 50, of Palm City, FL, is the second-ranked member of the 2012 US Olympic dressage squad with her Calecto V. She also happens to descend from an illustrious and celebrated circus family.

Tina Konyot and Calecto V on their way to a career high score and the 2012 USEF National Grand Prix reserve championship (and a berth on the Olympic team). Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

I don't know whether things are different today, but at one time, equestrian circus performers were bona fide elite riders and trainers. Sure, their horses could rear on command and do other "tricks"; but they could also execute FEI-level movements and probably also do some pretty outstanding haute école work.

The Konyot family, of Hungarian origin, is legendary in circus lore. Tina Konyot's great-grandfather Leopold Konyot joined the circus in 1870 as a teen and later married the daughter of a circus owner. Their twelve children--among them Tina's grandfather Arthur Konyot--became circus equestrians and acrobats, especially well known for their bareback riding.

In 1909, the Konyot family immigrated to the US to perform in John Ringling's Barnum & Bailey Circus. They returned to Europe a few years later and founded their own circus, whose success was interrupted by the death of Leopold's wife, Henrietta.

Shortly before the outbreak of World War I, Arthur Konyot married Manya, a Russian ballerina. Their son, Alex (Tina's late father), was born during wartime; and their daughter, Dorita, was born post-war, while the family was performing in circuses in France.

Arthur Konyot was a renowned animal trainer, and his children became outstanding equestrians. Around the time of World War II, Arthur, Manya, Alex, and Dorita Konyot pursued their circus fortunes in America, with much of the family eventually settling in Florida. (The Sarasota area, known as the "home of the American circus," is the winter quarters of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.)

Tina and her brother Randy are the children of Alex Konyot and his wife, Josephine Berosini, a Czech-born high-wire circus star.

The Konyot family and Josephine Berosini have been inducted into the Circus Ring of Fame.

"More Comfortable in the Saddle Than on a Sofa"


That's how Tina Konyot describes herself, and now that you know her history, it should come as no surprise. She grew up goofing off on horseback, jumping bareback and bridleless, galloping ponies--everything you'd expect from the horse-loving kid of a horse-loving, acrobatic circus family. She enjoys riding her Olympic mount, the fourteen-year-old Danish Warmblood stallion Calecto V, bareback and in a hackamore during their afternoon walks. She thrilled audiences at the 2012 USEF Dressage Festival of Champions when she unleashed Calecto in a full gallop and a "look, Ma, no hands" pose during the victory lap, then calmly pulled him up and walked sedately out of the Brown Arena. Now that's training.

Konyot and Calecto's first major international appearance was two years ago, at the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. The horse has improved since the WEG--at Gladstone, they earned a career high score of 80.149 percent in the Grand Prix, besting eventual champions Steffen Peters and Legolas--and he shows a freshness and an enjoyment of his work.

"He is my pet," Konyot says of her horse. "He's my boy. He knows he can play"--and, of course, he also knows when it's time to buckle down and work.

Konyot is especially proud that "I've developed him. No one else has contributed. No one else has sat on him. It's all my own training"--that is, "the Alex Konyot school of training," his daughter says. "Little ways of making weaknesses stronger."

She purchased Calecto at auction in Denmark as an eight-year-old, at that time schooling Prix St. Georges-level work. Other bidders were uninspired by the horse, who would "swing badly in the changes," Konyot says. But she liked his walk and his canter, and "You only buy what you can afford."

A Unique Path

Tina Konyot has charted her own course from her family's legacy to the Olympic stage. Her skill and showmanship are proof that you may be able to take the girl out of the circus, but you can't take the circus out of the girl. She's giving "circus riding" a whole new meaning.

(Source for the Konyot family history: articles on Tina Konyot's website, including the Circus Ring of Fame induction speech.)

Woo-Hoo, We're Famous!

Dressage. Rafalca. The United States Equestrian Federation. Show announcer Brian O'Connor. United States Equestrian Team Foundation headquarters in Gladstone, NJ. All of it!

Thank you, Stephen Colbert! We raise a Budweiser and a foam finger in your honor.

The Colbert Report
Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,Video Archive

Paragon Is Headed to England

If you're a fan of the US Dressage Federation's Facebook page, you were among the first to learn that Heather Blitz and her horse Paragon will be traveling to England with the 2012 US Olympic dressage squad as the reserve pair.

Flying high: Heather Blitz and Paragon are England-bound. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Heather and Paragon, who finished sixth in the Olympic selection trials last weekend at the 2012 US Equestrian Federation Dressage Festival of Champions, actually finished one place too low to earn the invitation to be the traveling reserve. But as I explained in yesterday's blog post, invitations are extended in ranked order--and the fifth-placing pair, Todd Flettrich and Cherry Knoll Farm's Otto, declined the invitation.

Otto, a sixteen-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding who with Todd represented the US at the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, instead is to be retired.

Otto has traveled across the pond many times, and the rider and owner preferred not to subject the horse to yet another trip with relatively little chance of actually competing. I suspect they believe that Otto probably doesn't have another WEG or Olympics in him, so it's better, kinder, and more dignified to retire him now. I'm sure it was a difficult decision to make, but Todd and Cherry Knoll Farm owner Margaret Duprey are to be commended for doing right by this wonderful horse.

In contrast, Paragon is a Grand Prix greenie: This is his very first season at the level--which makes his accomplishments all the more remarkable and a testament to owner Heather Blitz's training.

Theirs is a wonderful story: Heather was present when Paragon was foaled, and she has been the sole owner and trainer of the now nine-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding. Paragon is a rangy and leggy drink of water, just like his rider, with wonderfully expressive movement and a unique swanlike neck.

Even though Paragon won't compete in the Olympics unless misfortune befalls another pair, he and Heather will gain tremendous experience during their time in England.

Paragon will ship over with Ravel, Calecto V, Rafalca, Wizard, and Legolas on July 9, according to USEF national dressage technical advisor and high-performance coach Anne Gribbons. Stabled at a private facility about 90 minutes outside London, the horses will pick up their training on July 13. The following weekend, the American horses will get a tune-up--and some welcome foreign exposure--at a dressage competition at Hickstead, England.

On July 28, the final four--three team horses and an individual competitor--will ship to the Olympic competition venue in London.

So we bid "happy trails" to Otto, and then we look to the future. The Olympic machine is cranked up, with exciting happenings taking place almost daily. Tomorrow, it's hello Ravel! as The Big Horse arrives in Gladstone, NJ, from his home in California.

And the Team Is...

The 2012 US dressage Olympic selection trials concluded yesterday. So who's going to the London Olympic Games?

The US Equestrian Team Foundation's Maureen Pethick wasn't exactly sure. Neither was US Equestrian Federation PR rep Joanie Morris.

Huh? How can we not know?

Try to decipher the International Equestrian Federation's (FEI) 2012 Olympic dressage procedures and you'll begin to understand why. It's complicated.

There are rules governing who and how many can make the team...whether a nation can send an individual and/or a reserve rider...even the exact hour by which any lineup changes must be announced.  Making things somewhat more confusing this year is the fact that our #1 rider, Steffen Peters, qualified with two horses: Ravel, who earned a "bye" and didn't have to compete at the 2012 USEF Dressage Festival of Champions in Gladstone, NJ; and Legolas 92, who won the Grand Prix championship title and thereby also qualified for London.

The questions began: Can Steffen ride two horses in London? Can someone else ride Ravel or Legolas if Steffen becomes unable to compete? Can the US send a reserve horse? How many horses will we ship to Great Britain?

For answers, I went directly to the one person I knew could straighten me out: Anne Gribbons. Anne, as you may know, is the USEF national dressage technical advisor and high-performance coach. So here's the deal, straight from the horse's mouth, as they say.

First, we begin with what's officially known as the nominated entry--the list of the top finishers at the Olympic selection trials who are qualified for London. Note in the USEF press release announcing the nominated entry that Steffen Peters holds both the #1 and the #3 positions, with Ravel and Legolas 92, respectively.

International Olympic Committee dressage rules for London permit only three horse-rider combinations per team. In addition, each athlete may be paired with only one horse.

Translation: Steffen Peters may ride either Ravel or Legolas, but not both, according to Anne Gribbons.  Ravel is the top horse, so he is the team pick. But because the USEF wants to ensure that Steffen will ride, Legolas will ship to England as a reserve mount for Steffen only--no "catch riding" allowed at the Olympics, Anne explained.

The #2 team slot goes to the #2 finisher in the selection trials: 2012 USEF national Grand Prix reserve champion Tina Konyot on Calecto V. With the #3-ranked horse being Legolas, the third team slot therefore goes to the #4-ranked combination: Jan Ebeling on Rafalca.

Here's where things get interesting. According to Anne Gribbons, the #5-ranked pair, Adrienne Lyle on Wizard, will travel to London with the intention of competing as individuals. However, "Wizard will be a team horse and not compete as an individual should something happen" to a team horse or rider, Anne said.

But wait; there's more. In the press conference following the selection-trials conclusion, Anne stated that the USEF's intention is to ship "five or six" horses to England. So who's #6?

That would be the horse next in line in the ranking succession whose rider and owner grants permission for the horse to travel to England strictly to wait in the wings as a reserve horse. If Wizard gets "called up" for team duty, horse #6 could then compete as an individual.

Will Todd Flettrich and Otto travel to England with the US team? We'll know today, according to Anne Gribbons. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

As it stands according to the selection-trials results, "Otto would be the sixth horse," Anne said, referring to Todd Flettrich's mount. But agreeing to travel in this reserve position is not obligatory, and so "the rider and owner have to have a chat and decide" what to do, she explained. Todd and Otto's owner, Margaret Duprey of Cherry Knoll Farm, West Grove, PA, have until today to tell the USEF yes or no (although I suspect Anne already knows what the answer will be).

Should they decline, then the USEF will extend the invitation to the next-ranked pair (Heather Blitz on Paragon), and so on down the line. One way or another, the lineup will be finalized by day's end today, Anne said.

Regardless of how many horses we ship to England, only four will actually wind up at the 2012 Olympic equestrian venue, Greenwich Park, Anne said. The US contingent will spend the last two weeks of July at a rented farm situated about 90 minutes from the venue, she said. Come time to ship to Greenwich Park, assuming Ravel, Calecto V, Rafalca, and Wizard are sound and healthy, those four horses will head to the Olympics, and Legolas and Otto will remain behind.

For a detailed look at Greenwich Park and the upcoming Olympic dressage competition, see my Olympic preview in the July/August issue of USDF Connection, the member magazine of the United States Dressage Federation. (Not a member? Here's how to join.)

In my next post, I'll continue my interview with Anne Gribbons, who discusses the Olympic travel timetable and the American dressage riders' chances in London.

Wizard Is Magical at Olympic Selection-Trials Finale

Wizard and Adrienne Lyle trotting to third place in today's Olympic Grand Prix Special at the 2012 USEF Dressage Festival of Champions. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

I saw Wizard for the first time at the 2011 Adequan/USDF National Dressage Symposium in San Diego. The thirteen-year-old Oldenburg gelding, owned by Peggy Thomas and River Grove Farm in Hailey, ID, displayed international-quality presence, movement, and suppleness. Equally impressive was his beautifully classical rider, Adrienne Lyle, of Ketchum, ID. It was hard to believe that this protege of Olympian Debbie McDonald was only 27 years old.

This morning, in the final leg of competition in the 2012 United States Equestrian Federation National Grand Prix Championship and 2012 London Olympic Games dressage selection trials, Lyle and Wizard pulled out the stops for an expressive Olympic Grand Prix Special test. Judges Hilda Gurney, Linda Zang, Jane Weatherwax, Janet Foy, and Lois Yukins rewarded their efforts with a score of 74.889 percent.

Met by huge cheers from Lyle's and Wizard's fans and by a beaming Debbie McDonald, the pair's effort was enough to put them in third place, behind GP Special winners Steffen Peters and Legolas (77.956 percent) and second-place finishers Tina Konyot and Calecto V (77.889).

Wizard's test was a highlight, but several other pairs had struggles today. Nature called Jan Ebeling's mount, Rafalca, at precisely the wrong time; and the fifteen-year-old Oldenburg mare flubbed her line of fifteen one-tempi changes as a result. (Happily, the remainder of their solid, flowing test was good enough for fourth place with 73.844 percent.)

Solid performance from Rafalca and Jan Ebeling put them in fourth today and third overall in the 2012 Olympic selection trials. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Fandango (Guenter Seidel) and Robin Hood (Susan Blinks) also had some trouble with the tempis. Legolas flubbed a change in the twos, and Otto (Todd Flettrich) showed better piaffe-passage than yesterday but had a couple of breaks in gait that looked like overeagerness. The result was that, unlike in yesterday's Grand Prix, nobody broke the 80-percent mark.

The Olympic selection-trials process comprised back-to-back weekends of competition at United States Equestrian Team Foundation headquarters in Gladstone, NJ. Competitors rode the FEI Grand Prix and the Olympic Grand Prix Special each weekend, with each test counting 25 percent. Steffen Peters' "big horse," Ravel, has a bye and didn't compete. That left the top four at Gladstone as Peters/Legolas, Konyot/Calecto V, Ebeling/Rafalca, and Lyle/Wizard.

Legolas checks out his national-championship trophy, held by owner Akiko Yamazaki. At left are FEI 5* judge Axel Steiner and Yamazaki's daughter. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Although the official US Olympic dressage "nominated entry" hasn't happened yet, the USEF is hoping to ship "five or six" horses to London, according to USEF national dressage technical advisor and high-performance coach Anne Gribbons. If our dressage team of three ends up being Ravel, Calecto V, and Rafalca (with Legolas going as a backup mount for Peters and Wizard and Lyle traveling as the reserve combination), it will mean that Peters will be the only Olympic veteran in London.

National dressage technical Anne Gribbons (left) with top GP Special finishers Jan Ebeling, Tina Konyot, Steffen Peters, and Adrienne Lyle. Photo by Jennifer Bryant.

Most athletes will tell you that making an Olympic team for the first time is an unforgettable thrill.

"Since I attended my very first Olympic Games, in 1976, I have wanted to make the team," said Konyot, 50, of Palm City, FL.

Like many other accomplished Grand Prix-level riders, Konyot has years of experience and many wins under her belt. But a rider needs the right horse, and finding or training the right horse is no easy feat, not to mention the feat of keeping him sound. Since Konyot began competing her Danish Warmblood stallion, now 14, in 2007, she and Calecto V have developed a strong bond. The pair represented the US at the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, and Konyot is a cool customer who says she's good under pressure.

And pressure they will have: As I reported in yesterday's post, FEI 5* judge Axel Steiner predicts that teams at the London Games will need to earn scores in the mid-80s to put themselves in medal position. We'll need not only outstanding performances but something approaching a teamful of career-best tests to put ourselves in that lofty league.

Power to the Para-Equestrians

I quit complaining (mostly) about how hard it is to ride dressage after I watched the para-equestrian dressage riders at the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.

My errant left shoulder? That right hip that can have a mind of its own? Shaddup already, I told myself. These elite para-equestrians are good--better than some of you able-bodied folks reading this, I'll wager--and they are physically disabled.

Many of these accomplished riders' disabilities are fairly serious. Some, they were born with. Others were the result of accidents or injuries. Some para-equestrians are missing limbs or are confined to wheelchairs when out of the saddle.

Think about it. Could you ride if you had only one leg? Only one arm? Poor motor control? And yet these equestrians are literally set free when they're on horseback, and they turn in dressage tests and freestyles that are seriously difficult. No "gimmes" or pity here.

For the first time at the US Equestrian Federation Dressage Festival of Champions, the competition this year includes the selection trials for the 2012 London Paralympic Games. It is a treat to see, as we did at the 2010 WEG, our nation's best dressage riders competing at the same venue as our nation's best para-equestrian dressage riders.

Para-equestrians are classified into grades, or levels of disability, in official classification events in which they are evaluated by a physiotherapist or specially trained physician. The grades range from IV (the least disabled) to I (the most disabled, subdivided into walk-trot and walk-only divisions). The International Equestrian Federation (FEI) governs para-equestrian dressage.

2012 US National Para-Equestrian champion Rebecca Hart on Lord Ludger. Photo by Lindsay McCall.

At Gladstone, NJ, at the Festival of Dressage Champions, Grade II rider Rebecca Hart, of Unionville, PA, earned her fifth USEF National Para-Equestrian Dressage Championship title--and presumably, although the team hasn't been formally named yet, a trip to London. Hart rode Lord Ludger, a Holsteiner gelding owned by dressage Olympian Jessica Ransehousen, also of Unionville.

The reserve champion was last year's champion pair, Grade Ib competitor Jonathan Wentz, of Richardson, TX, riding NTEC Richter Scale, a Shire-cross gelding owned by Kai Handt.

In third was Donna Ponessa, New Windsor, NY, a Grade Ia competitor riding Western Rose, an Oldenburg mare owned by Wesley Dunham.

Paralympic hopeful and third-placed 2012 US National Para-Equestrian championship finisher Donna Ponessa is all smiles at the press conference. Photo by Lindsay McCall.

A team of four dressage riders and horses will represent the US at the 2012 London Paralympic Games. The four horse-rider combinations and two alternate combinations will be named July 16, according to US Para-Equestrian Association PR manager Lindsay McCall.

We salute all of our talented para-equestrians and the owners of their wonderful mounts!