Australian Dressage News

Australian WEG Short List to be Named after Sydney CDI

April 25, 2006

Under the Equestrian Federation of Australia's WEG Selection Policy, up to three or four Australian-based horses will be required to travel to Europe for a pre-WEG training camp. A further two combinations will continue training and preparations in Australia. These combinations are to be named after the Sydney CDI 3-Star. Riders will be aiming to produce their best performances to impress the selectors who will all be in attendance.

Australian Dressage is improving to the point where the selectors may have a few choices on their hands.

Kristy Oatley and Quando Quando are in good form after their 9th place in the Grand Prix and their win in the Freestyle at Braunschweig CDI*** in Germany in March. Matthew Dowsley and Cinderella turned heads with their 7th place in the Grand Prix and their 3rd place in the Freestyle at Stadl Paura CDI*** in Austria this month. Heath Ryan and Mary Hanna obtained qualifying scores with Greenoaks Dundee and Port Said 10 from French O-Level Judge Isabel Judet at this month's Dressage Festival CDI-W at Werribee. Rachael Sanna and Chatham Pak Jac have exploded onto the International circuit, winning the Grand Prix and the Freestyle at the Dressage Festival in their first ever CDI-W appearance.

Rachael will be hoping to pull off another top performance at the Sydney CDI to fulfil the qualifying criteria and give the selectors something new to think about. The selectors may have more on their minds if Queenslanders Kelly Layne and Paula Price have a good show with Amoucheur and APH True Seville. Back in Germany, Kristy's second horse Don Bolero is another possibility with performances not far behind his stable mate Quando Quando. With horses like these just one show away from qualifying, the already-qualified riders find they are not yet able to rest easy under the Selectors' eyes at Sydney.

Selected riders will be invited to attend the four-week training camp at Ulla Salzgeber's stables, which will be funded by the EFA's High Performance Program. Ulla is also planning another High Performance Clinic in Australia in June.

Don't miss your last chance to see your favourite riders in action at the Sydney CDI 3-Star weekend after next.

Related Links
CDI Sydney, Final Australian Selection Trial for World Equestrian Games
Australian Dressage Squads for 2006 Announced