Laura Graves (USA) and Verdades wowed the crowd with their freestyle and won the class. Graves and Verdades, her 17-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding by Florett AS, came out on top with an 83.220% in the FEI Grand Prix Freestyle CDI-W, presented by Wellington Agricultural Services.
Graves said, “I wasn’t what sure which music I was going to do tonight. In the end, I’m very, very glad I chose to do my new music. I don’t know what else I would have been saving it for. I’m just glad that the timing worked out; I haven’t ridden to it yet. It’s supposed to be about the same as my last one, so I just crossed my fingers and hoped that it worked out and it did. I’m so lucky that Terri Gallo just takes whatever idea that I have.”
Speaking of her test, Graves explained, “[I had] a big mistake in my final pirouette. I came at him a bit strong in the spur. And then in the piaffe fan, which we haven’t touched since Aachen last year, I was a bit greedy and selfish in the warm-up. He let me know that he knows his job. He gives such a good feeling when he does go well that any little bump in my hand or my leg is shocking to me.”
Shelly Francis (USA) came in second with a score of 79.280%. Francis rode Danilo, a 15-year-old Hanoverian gelding by De Niro owned by Patricia Stempel. Commenting on her freestyle Francis said, “I made little changes in some of the music. Just little ones, but I left the choreography mostly the same. A couple of years past he would get nervous and kind of get a bit dumb. Now he just gets a little bit of extra energy into it and I need an extra half halt instead of going, ‘It’s okay.’ He is really maturing, but he took me awhile.”
Tinne Vilhelmson Silfven (SWE) came in third with a score of 77.710%. Silfven rode Don Auriello, a 17-year-old Hanoverian gelding by Don Davidoff owned by Lövsta Stuteri. Silfven described that she “really had a great feeling tonight. He just loves this atmosphere. He needs that. He’s used to competitions now and he really loves the atmosphere that comes in the evening with the music. So I had a great feeling.”
Judge at C Hans Christian Matthiesen, commented, “It’s wonderful to be back, and judge. An atmosphere like this, it’s really, really special. And then it’s just nice to be back and see some of these combinations that I’ve seen before, judged before, and then see them strive in this sometime difficult atmosphere when it gets so intense with all the spectators. It’s very special. I must say that I think they did really, really good. We had top performances today.”
