Part I of the dressage test of the CICO3* Fontainebleau

50 riders and horses distinguished themselves in the dressage arena in front of the judges Michel Asseray (FRA), Yves François Belz (FRA) and Giulio Pocci (ITA, the president of the jury). Among those performing in yesterday’s tests,
spectators were thrilled to discover some of the leading riders such as : Peter Thomsen (GER, gold medal winner in the
team event at the Olympic Games in Beijing) /Parko 4 ; Susanna Bordonne (ITA, bronze medal winner in the team event at the European Championships in 2007) / Blue Moss ; Olivier Townend (GB) / Flint Curtis (gold medal winner in the team event at the European Championships in 2007 with this horse) ; Bettina Hoy (GER)/ Ringwood Cockatoo (gold medal winner in the team event at the World Championships in 2006 with this horse) ; Clayton Fredericks (AUS, silver medal winner in the team event at the Olympic Games in Beijing)/ The Frog ; Nicolas Touzaint (FRA, gold medal winner in the team event at the Olympic Games in 2004 and the current European Champion) / Hildago de l’Ile ; Mary King (GB, bronze medal winner in the team event at the Olympic Games in Beijing) with her two horses Impérial Cavalier and Kings Fancy …

Interview with the rider who is 3rd in the World Rankings, one of the discipline’s stars and the only one who is competing with four horses at this Official International Eventing Competition :

Mary King: “This is the first time that I have come to Fontainebleau. I have come to prepare the European
Championships but also because my fellow countrymen often praised this competition. It is true that for the beginning of the season, the Grand Parquet ground is ideal for horses and this 3 star level of event will prepare my horse very well in view of future competitions.

With regard to the cross country test, I think that the CICO 3* course that Pierre Michelet has created for us is less difficult than those that he usually reserves for us at the end of the season. I am competing with 4 horses here in Fontainebleau, and I rode two of them today: firstly Imperial Cavalier with which I was third to go. He was rather temperamental especially because of the wind and that is one of the reasons why he made a few mistakes. My 2nd horse, Kings Fancy, which competed at the beginning of the afternoon, admittedly is a horse which has a lot less experience than Imperial. On the other hand, he rose to the task and did what I asked of him. Tomorrow, I am going to ride two other horses, Kings Temptress, which is the least experienced of my 4 horses but it is also the calmest and Appache Sauche, which is the most experienced of them . It is true that I would love to win this first edition of the CICO 3* but my main objective remains my preparation for the European Championships.”

As for the rankings, here are the results after this first part of the dressage test :

Individually: Bettina Hoy / Ringwood Cockatoo (GER) in the lead of the provisional line-up with 31.7 pts, ahead of Karin Donckers (BEL, 9th in the World Rankings) / Gazelle de la Brasserie (37.9 pts) who is second. Nicolas Touzaint (11th in the World Rankings) / Hildago de l’Ile (FRA) is in 3rd place with 39 pts.

Teams: 1- Germany (84 pts); 2- France (97.10 pts); 3- Belgium (103.10 pts)