horse. At home once a day he is ridden by a girl and so should be okay. Edwina Alexander, 2006: They
are all very good horses. The horse from Jos will be a very different horse for all of us. Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum,
2006: Growing up in America, we do this [switch horses] quite a bit as junior riders. I think it’s really good. Since then, I’ve done it very seldom. Eric Navet, 2006: In this situ-
ation, there is not much time to change the horse. You have to adapt to the horse. Like Beezie said, her horse, Meredith’s horse, and mine are all very similar. We’re going to have to adapt to Jos’s horse. We won’t have to change dramatically.
Left: Rodrigo Pessoa riding Calvaro V (Cantus x Merano) in the Final Four, Rome, 1998 World Championship. Rodrigo won the individual gold medal, and the Holsteiner Calvaro was awarded the prize for Best Horse. Middle: Peter Wylde on the Holsteiner Fein Cera (Landadel x Cor de la Bryere). 2002 World Championship, Jerez de la Frontera. Wylde won the bronze medal, and Fein Cera won the Best Horse prize. Right: Dermott Lennon on Liscalgot (Touchdown x Tula Rocket xx), 2002 World Champion- ship, Jerez de la Frontera. Lennon became World Champion.
POST-RIDE COMMENTARY At press conferences following the Final Four, riders share their feelings about how they and their horses did. Greg Best, 1990: It was a bit nerve-wracking to see him ridden
by others. The nice thing is that nothing happened to him that was bad. He came out of it looking just as great as he did going into it. It was a big relief. I’m quite satisfied with the way he performed today. He was brilliant. He was absolutely great. Rodrigo Pessoa, 1998: Calvaro has a big stride, extremely
careful, and a lot of power. He was very different and gave the best feeling. It was him I rode the best. Franke Sloothak about Calvaro, 1998: For a big horse he is
very light. He is careful and he is always trying to do his best. It is a special time to be two times at the Games, and two times in the finals—to get a gold and a bronze. For a lot of people it is a dream, and for me it is very special. Dermott Lennon, 2002: My horse was easiest to ride. Eric’s was
easy, also. Fein Cera [Peter Wylde’s mare] was sensitive to ride. Eric Navet, 2002: I enjoyed very much riding Peter’s mare.
She is exactly the type of horse I love to ride. Dermott was bril- liant today. He had no mistakes and he deserved to win.
FAIR TO THE HORSES? Horses who have jumped five rounds Wednesday, Thurs- day and Saturday are most likely tired. Over the years, riders worried that Sunday’s Final Four was too much for the horses. They also debated awarding the World Championship to
riders rather than the best horse-and-rider combination. In 1990, 1998, 2002 and 2006, the partnerships who were at the top of the standings didn’t end up becoming the champions: Gem Twist, Gandini Lianos, Dollar du Murier HTS de Seine and Authentic. (In 1994, Franke and Weihaiwe were leading, and Franke became World Champion.) Greg Best, 1990: I’d be quite satisfied for the whole thing to be over with right now.
Frank Chapot, 1990: The formula should be changed. The
World Champion tonight is Gem Twist. This is too much. John Whitaker, 1990: I don’t think it’s the best formula.
It’s spectacular, but it should be the best horse and rider combination. Franke Sloothak, 1998: I didn’t think it would be easy in
The Hague [1994] and I didn’t think it was easy here. I think the horses were more excited here. So that made it difficult for me. Peter Wylde, 2002: Fein Cera has a lot of blood and does fine
even if she is really tired. Physically it’s a lot for the horses. Eric Navet, 2002: I really do have the feeling that my horse
deserved the title of World Champion as a horse. He had no rails down all week. I feel strange for him, because he deserved the title. It is frustrating for horse lovers. Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum, 2006: I think it’s quite clear that
after five rounds of this kind of jumping the horses get tired. Chris Kappler, 2017: Shutterfly is a very sensitive horse
who was a great match with his rider, Meredith. They had been such a partnership for so long, maybe no one else had ever ridden him. He came back to do some good things.
CHANGING TIMES AND OPINIONS In 2017, we sought four opinions on the elimination of the Final Four. George Morris: It’s a very special class. I probably liked it
more than other people. Now the horses are so precious and so expensive, I’ve soured on that format for that class. I don’t think today it’s right with the price of the horses and what goes into the horses. In hindsight it’s hard on the horses. Horses didn’t like being saddled in front of all those people. Shutterfly in Aachen was very dangerous.
I held out longer than most; I thought it was the ultimate
test of horsemanship. I think we are now past that class. I hope they save it for a specialty class, like in Aachen.
Warmbloods Today 17
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