Gareth Hughes has kickstarted the British campaign in the European Dressage Championships grand prix, becoming the first of the team to lay down a score.
Gareth and the 17-year-old mare Classic Briolinca posted 74.57% to go into second place on the leaderboard at this early stage of the competition.
Gareth rode a correct, pleasing test with Briolinca. He said afterwards it was one of the better tests he has produced with the Trento B daughter. The mare is owned by Gareth, his wife Rebecca and daughter Ruby, and Julia Hornig, and has been with Gareth since she was a three-year-old.
Their test was mistake-free, fluent and highly harmonious, with the highlights being the pirouettes – which scored nines – and the piaffe-passage work, which is always one of this lovely mare’s strengths.
“I’m slightly disappointed with the mark, but I’m so happy with my mare. I thought she deserved a bit more,” said Gareth.
“There are two things I always aim for: to go mistake-free and to try to be a nice rider. I’m sure I could ask more and get more marks, but I think it’s important to show that nice picture and the harmony. I liked the feeling I had through the test, and I liked the feeling I had when I finished.”
Briolinca sometimes struggles to maintain her halts in the arena, especially in a big atmosphere, but today Gareth achieved two good halts. Although their third and final one was very brief, Gareth explained that he had taken action to help Briolinca achieve it amidst the applause that would accompany their final salute.
“We always have our best rides in the arena – Briolinca always steps up,” he said. “When we did the arena familiarisation yesterday she spun around – she’s quirky like that, and she lacks patience sometimes. So I had an idea of how I would do our last halt today, and I put in some walk steps, so it wasn’t as direct, but I halted. She can be sensitive, and she remembers the applause from previous tests – she has a very long memory!”
European Dressage Championships grand prix: Germany begin their attack
Gareth and Briolinca slot into second on the leaderboard, behind Germany’s Matthias Rath and Thiago GS, who snuck slightly ahead on 74.85%. This is Matthias’ first team appearance since the 2015 Europeans, when he rode this 10-year-old stallions’s sire, the legendary Totilas.
Their test was highly expressive, with bold extensions, but Thiago lacked some relaxation, and straightness in the changes.
Denmark’s Daniel Bachmann Andersen currently holds third position with Vayron, a 12-year-old Vitalis son making his championship debut, and scoring 74.15%.
Carl Hester and Fame will be the next British pair in action, entering the Riesenbeck arena at 4.24pm this afternoon (3.24pm UK time). Charlotte Dujardin and Imhotep will compete tomorrow at 12.24pm (11.24am UK time), with Lottie Fry the final British rider, competing with Glamourdale at 4.15pm on Thursday (3.15pm UK time).
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