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American Dressage
News
Chronicle of the Horse Readers Favour FBW Kennedy
and Guenter Seidel
February 7, 2005
 Readers of the American equestrian magazine Chronicle
of the Horse have named Guenter Seidel, U.S. Horseman
of the Year 2004, and FBW Kennedy, U.S. Dressage Horse
of
the Year 2004.
Seidel earned his Horseman of the Year title based
on his remarkable performances in 2004. The American
dressage rider, who is German born but who lives in
Cardiff, California, qualified two horses for the 2004
U.S. Olympic Short List and won team bronze at the
2004 Olympic Games. Added to that is Seidel's fantastic
attitude towards dressage and competition which make
him a desireable team rider who is respected by his
fellow team mates.
The Chronicle wrote about Seidel: " For high-performance
equestrians, getting to the Olympics is the fusion
of years of dreaming, tons of talent,
decades of hard work, and luck. Finding that right horse and
preparing it for the rigors of international competition is an all-consuming
job that takes a toll on the psyche.
But what if you have two horses you’re preparing for the Olympics?
That’s twice the effort, planning, expense and stress. Enough to make a
rider crazy if he or she lets it.
But if you’re Guenter Seidel, who qualified two
horses for the 2004 U.S. Olympic dressage team’s
short list, you’re not a stranger to that situation
because you simply planned it that way."
The Chronicle of the Horse voted FBW Kennedy as Horse
of the Year 2004. The Chronicle was full of praise
for the chestnut Baden Wurttemberger gelding. "There
aren’t
many horses in the world who retired five-time Olympian
to rush out and catch
to Europe. But when Robert Dover learned that might
be for sale, that’s exactly what he did."
Dover's
long time sponsor Jane Clark bought Kennedy in September
2003 and only one year later, Dover was the second
best performing American in dressage at the 2004
Olympics, finishing sixth individually and winning
team bronze.
Image copyrighted: Astrid Appels/Eurodressage
Related Links
Chronicle of the Horse
2004 Olympic Games in Athens
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