Charlotte Dujardin and Gio
© Charlotte Dujardin Facebook page
By Equestrian Life
The LeMieux National Dressage Championships took place over the past four days at Stoneleigh Park in the UK. There were many great performances over the course of the event, however seeing a familiar face win the National Grand Prix title was certainly a thrill for many.
Carl Hester and Nip Tuck rode the incredibly technical freestyle that they performed in Rio to earn the winning score of 78.47%, ahead of Lara Butler and Kristjan (75.55%) and Louise Bell with Into the Blue (73.60%).
Carl and Nip Tuck also won the Grand Prix test earlier at the event, with a score of 75.82%. It was to be Carl’s tenth National Grand Prix title!
Carl Hester and Nip Tuck at the National Dressage Championships at Stoneleigh Park
© Charlotte Dujardin Facebook page
Another highlight of the event was Charlotte Dujardin’s Intermediate II win with Gio. At just 16hh, the diminutive Gio proved that talent and heart outweigh height to score 78.34%. Speaking to British Dressage, Charlotte was full of praise for the son of Apache: “He’s the bravest little horse, he’s so genuine and he never changes – I couldn’t have asked for a better test. He has a heart of gold – he’s gone from Advanced Medium this time last year to Inter II this year. I don’t want to rush him so we’ll go home and he’ll have a little holiday. He’ll definitely be a Tokyo contender – why not!”
Charlotte also had success in the Small Tour classes with Mount St John Stud’s Mount St John Valencia. The pair won the Prix St Georges with a great score of 75.447%.
Charlotte Dujardin and Mount St John Valencia
© Charlotte Dujardin Facebook page
In the Intermediate I, some costly mistakes saw the pair settle for second on 73.974% behind Gareth Hughes and Sintano Van Hof Olympia on 75.21%.
Gareth opted to rest his horse and didn’t contest the Intermediate I Freestyle, paving the way for Charlotte to claim another victory, which was to be her third consecutive win in this class at the Nationals. Charlotte and Valencia scored 76.82%.
Full results from the LeMieux National Dressage Championships can be found here.
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