Dujardin wins Small Tour double at Hartpury

The Hartpury Festival of Dressage staged five days of top class Premier League competition alongside its annual CDI3* (3 - 7 July 2019). Spectators were treated to a high quality entry of British dressage talent as Hartpury brought the curtain down on the 2019 Premier League season.

Local girl Charlotte Dujardin and new ride Mount St John Valencia (pictured) created much excitement with two fabulous winning rides over the week, first of all taking their section of Wednesday’s Fairfax Saddles Prix St Georges and later, the Saracen Horse Feeds Intermediate I on Thursday.

Emma Blundell’s sporty chestnut mare and her multi-gold medal rider produced a 76.01% performance on Wednesday in section B of the Fairfax Saddles Prix St Georges section A to take the class by a wide margin from second placed Dannie Morgan and Knoxx’s Figaro (71.62%).

The following day, Charlotte and the Vivaldi x Ferragamo nine year old again delivered to take the Saracen Horse Feeds Intermediate I with a plus-76% score. An energetic, balanced test was a joy to watch, the horse uphill and expressive from the first centre line to the final halt. There was a little greenness in the changes, but the quality is exciting, the horse so happy to work and with much more to come.

Charlotte also won Wednesday’s Cavalor Intermediate II aboard pocket rocket eight year old Gio (Apache x Tango), on his first attempt at the level scoring 76.93%.

“It’s been an amazing start at Hartpury Festival of Dressage as mine and Renai Hart’s Pumpkin (Gio) won the Inter II with 76.9% and Mount St John Valencia won the PSG with 76.1% and then the Inter I with 76.8%; only her third PSG test and her second Inter I test to date!” said Charlotte on Facebook. “I cannot even tell you how happy I was with both these horses who really tried hard for me in the tests.”

Michael Eilberg enjoyed a good show winning Sunday’s Cavalor Intermediate II with Farah Al Khojai’s Sarotti 57 who he plans to step up to Grand Prix soon. They scored 73.33% on only Michael’s third appearance with the 12 year old Sir Donnerhall gelding. New dad Michael, whose wife Maya recently gave birth to their first child, Joshua Ferdinand, also won Thursday’s qualifying round for the Elite Stallions Young Horse PSG for horses aged seven to nine. His winning ride Daltrey (nine), who he co-owns with Ferdi Eilberg, earned 71.62% securing a place in Saturday night’s Elite Stallions Championship Final.

In front of a knowledgeable gala evening crown in the Hartpury Arena, eight top young Small Tour horses were presented. Giving their best test to date, Jayne Turney and Pengaligon’s Jupiter (by Starnberg), owned by Shirley Rixon, earned 72.94% for victory, with Dannie Morgan (Knoxx’s Figaro) and Sam Duckworth (MSJ Top Secret) completing the top three. Jayne, whose friend and mentor Charlotte Dujardin was on hand to help, put an emotional message on Facebook, “For every little girl that goes to bed on Christmas Eve wishing for a pony, and every person wondering why we are doing what we do! Don’t ever stop wishing and dreaming! With hard work, perseverance and having the right people cheering you on, it’s amazing what you can achieve.”

British Dressage thanks all the class sponsors and the team at Hartpury for putting on a fantastic event. Congratulations to all the winners listed below and to all those who took part.

The winners:
Wednesday
Class 1a: Fairfax Saddles Prix St Georges
Dylan Deutrom with San Marco, 72.28%

Class 1b: Fairfax Saddles Prix St Georges
Charlotte Dujardin with Mount St John Valencia, 76.01%

Class 2: Cavalor Intermediate II
Charlotte Dujardin with Gio, 76.93%

Class 3: NAF M Power Advanced Medium
Dean Skeates with Rossana, 72.43%

Class 4: Baileys Horse Feeds Advanced Medium
Bronte Watson with Guess Van De Moerhoek, 70.66%

Thursday
Class 5a: Saracen Horse Feeds Intermediate I
Charlotte Dujardin with Mount St John Valencia, 76.05%

Class 5b: Saracen Horse Feeds Intermediate I
Rebecca Hughes with Ibisco, 69.47%

Class 6: LeMieux Grand Prix
Carl Hester with Nip Tuck, 73.98%

Class 7: JS Team Wear Advanced 105
Eilidh Grant with Mount St John Doornroos, 68.33%

Class 8: Elite Stallions Young Horse PSG
Michael Eilberg with Daltrey, 71.62%

Friday
Class 9: Hickstead British Young Horse National 5YO Qualifier
Abigail Lyle with Jefferson P, 8.1

Class 10:Hickstead British Young Horse National 6YO Qualifier
Michael Eilberg with MSJ Dante VX, 8.82

Class 11: Hickstead British Young Horse FEI 5YO Qualifier
Martina Ott with Just Jet, 7.46

Class 12: Hickstead British Young Horse FEI 6YO Qualifier
Mia Mordecai-Smith with Innocent, 7.6

Saturday
Class 16: Equine Construction Advanced Medium
Charlotte Dujardin with Hawtins San Floriana, 75.79%

Class 17: Elite Stallions Championship Final
Jayne Turney with Penhaligon’s Jupiter, 72.94%

Sunday
Class 18: Andrews Bowen Junior, Young Rider and Pony Team Test
Soraya Rogers with Evita I, 69.64%

Class 19: Fairfax Saddles Prix St Georges
Calum Whitworth with Fernando, 70.92%

Class 20: Cavalor Intermediate II
Michael Eilberg with Sarotti 57, 73.33%