British rider Hannah Biggs and Weltzin (pictured) secured 12th place in world-class company at the Reem Acra FEI World Cup Dressage™ 2012/2013 – round 6, Amsterdam, 18-19 January.
Hannah and her 14-year-old chestnut stallion Weltzin (Weltbogen x Werther) kept their cool in the charged atmosphere of the Amsterdam RAI arena to secure 12th place with a freestyle score of 69.05%.
“I’m really really happy. It was the hardest competition I’ve ever been up against. The grand prix was quite a big class and it was tough to get into the music,” said Hannah whose previous day’s 67.10% grand prix score earned 15th place and a spot in the kür.
Describing the Amsterdam RAI venue, Hannah said: “It was a lovely show, a little like Olympia, and buzzy. We had to walk through the trade stands to get to the arena and a lot of the horses were affected by the atmosphere. Weltzin coped well though - he felt really good. And from my point of view, a lot of the work with the World Class Development Programme has helped – it has helped me keep my cool and cope with pressure.”
The British pair’s freestyle, to a compilation of tracks from Coldplay, Adele and the Harry Potter films, was assured and harmonious. “We’re now getting better marks for a lot of the difficult movements, plus, his general way of going is better and I can now show him off a bit more,” explained Hannah, who is trained by Emile Faurie.
“Emile flew to Amsterdam to help me for the grand prix. He was meant to fly back to compete at the Addington High Profile Show which was cancelled because of the snow. I was secretly very pleased as he was then able to stay and help me for the kür!” she confessed.
The winners were Germany’s Helen Langehanenberg with Damon Hill NRW, Christian Becks’ remarkable Donnerhall-sired stallion. Their performance was awarded with 86.02% to edge ahead of the Netherlands’ Adelinde Cornelissen and Jerich Parzival on 85.42%.
Britain’s Sarah Millis and HP Frontier scored 65.59% in the grand prix, narrowly missing out on a place in the kür.
For full results click here
Amsterdam CDI-W website click here
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Amsterdam CDI-W: Biggs and Weltzin hit the right note
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