Top Dutch duo Adelinde Cornelissen and Parzival will not be competing at the FEI European Dressage Championships next month.
The rider withdrew her top horse from the 2015 Dutch dressage championships earlier this month (17-19 July). And the pair were not named on the list published by the Dutch equestrian federation earlier this week.
It is the first time in six years that Adelinde has not represented her country.
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The 2011 and 2012 World Cup winner has not shown sufficient fitness this season to take part in the Europeans.
The Dutch championships, where the 18-year-old was withdrawn, was the final Dutch team selection trial for the Europeans. Adelinde said Parzival was “not fit to compete”.
Adelinde and Parzival currently sit in fourth place on the FEI world dressage rankings, behind Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro, Adelinde’s countryman Edward Gal and Glock’s Undercover and Germany’s Kristina Broring-Sprehe.
The pair have only been seen out once this season, an event in Rotterdam in June where they withdrew. Their last win was the in the grand prix at Mechelen in December.
The Dutch combination, who were pipped to Olympic gold in London by Charlotte and Valegro, have had a difficult couple of seasons. The warmblood was off for much of last year with a cardiac arrhythmia — a heart-rate problem — and had an operation to correct it in June 2013.
He was then rested from competition with the aim of being selected for the World Equestrian Games in September, where they were part of the bronze medal-winning team.
Danielle Heijkoop and Siro are also missing from the line up. The horse came back from injury at the Dutch championships, but was also withdrawn as he was not up to fitness. Siro previously suffered a fractured splint bone in March.
Edward Gal and Undercover, Hans Peter Minderhoud and Johnson, Diederik van Silfhout and Arlando and Patrick van der Meer and Uzzo make up the squad. A reserve rider has not been named.
