Articles: Horse News
Hart and Wentz Storm to Top Five Placings on First Freestyle Day of the 2012
Paralympic Games
Jonathan Wentz and NTEC Richter Scale finished fifth in Monday's Grade1b
Freestyle
(Shannon Brinkman)
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NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 3, 2012
By Helen Murray
Greenwich, UK- The United States spent much of Monday on the edge of their
seats as riders produced top class performances throughout the day at the
2012 Paralympic Games. American riders came within slim margins of vaulting
themselves onto the medal podium as they earned their best scores of the
week.
Both Rebecca Hart and Jonathan Wentz rode their best tests of the Games to
jump to the top of the leaderboard, then saw their totals eclipsed by the
final rides in their divisions. Both finished their respective Freestyle
Championships in fifth place.
Grade II
Hart (Unionville, PA) entered the main arena on Monday morning with
redemption on her mind. The Grade II competitor was determined to earn
higher marks then she had in the Individual Test, a performance she had
higher expectations for then her 11th place finish. In the Freestyle Test,
27-year-old Hart was able to get the effort she wanted out of Jessica
Ransehousen's Lord Ludger. The Oldenburg gelding produced a flowing and
active Freestyle, which had an added degree of difficulty by including
lateral work to score 73.250%.
Hart was very pleased with her test and the final picture she left for the
Ground Jury of Kjell Myhre, Sarah Rodger, Gudrun Hofinga, Freddy Leyman, and
Anne Prain.
"It feels great; considering we had some problems in the Individual
Championship Test," said Hart. "So it was nice to go in there and remedy
some of those and just to leave that impression with the judges at the end
of the competition was nice."
The pair performed to the music of "Classical Gas" which suited the rangy
gelding very well. Hart also incorporated feedback she has received from the
last two tests to up their scores today.
"We thought it [the music] suited the horse; it was calm enough but
increased his performance by not getting him too excited," said Hart. "I
know the Freestyle well, I love riding the Freestyle. We did take a look at
what they [the judges] had to say and we did try to ride to that. The honest
fact was that we needed to get the walk freer and more animated, so we tried
to do that."
Dale Dedrick (Ann Arbor, MI) also represented the United States in Grade II
competition, finishing in 10th place with her own Bonifatius. In Thursday's
Team Test the 14-year-old Hanoverian gelding was quite unsettled in the
Greenwich Park atmosphere. However competing in their third test on Monday
the pair was the picture of quiet confidence.
They rode a fluid Freestyle set the music of "Kitten of the Keys" scoring
69.150%. Like her teammate Dedrick also increased the difficulty of the test
by including lateral work.
"I was delighted. It's lovely music and it makes it easy for me to just
relax and let the horse trot to the music," said Dedrick of her
Freestyle. "I think he likes it too."
Great Britain's Natasha Baker scored her second Individual Gold medal of
these Games with Cabral. Germany took Silver and Bronze respectively with
Britta Napel and Aquilina 3 and Angelika Trabert and Ariva-Avanti .
Grade 1b
Wentz (Richardson, TX) entered the main arena Monday afternoon with great
determination riding Kai Handt's NTEC Richter Scale. The pair set the tone
immediately with their bold entrance and kept their energy up in a test that
included leg-yields and earned them a 73%. The music which was an homage to
music from World War II movies perfectly suited the 18-year-Shire cross
gelding.
Wentz was very pleased he was able to remedy some of the issues he
experienced earlier in the week.
"The first couple days I dug myself some holes, with some rider errors. But
today was absolutely the best performance I could have asked for from my
horse," said Wentz. "The way my horse performed, the way I was able to learn
from mistakes the first days to put in the test we had today, really makes
me happy."
It was an emotional day for the Grade 1b competitor as it was his final
appearance with NTEC Richter Scale, a horse that has carried him to his
first World Championships, Paralympic Games and National Championship. These
games turned out to be a fitting end to their storied career.
"My horse was out of this world today, he's been out of this world this
entire time and it's been going great," Wentz paid tribute to not only NTEC
Richter Scale but to all the horses at the Paralympic Games.
"The horses give us their all every day, especially with the Paralympic
horses and the Paralympic riders it takes a special kind of horse to learn
what's going on with the disabilities. So all the horses that are here this
week are saints and they all deserve applause."
Pepo Puch of Austria claimed the Gold medal with Fine Feeling, while
Finland's Katja Karjalainen and Rosie earned Silver and Great Britain's Lee
Pearson and Gentleman won the Bronze medal.
Donna Ponessa (New Windsor, NY) will be the final U.S. competitor of the
2012 Paralympic Games tomorrow afternoon in Grade 1a competition.
ENDS
For Results and Orders of Go visit;
http://www.london2012.com/paralympics/equestrian/schedule-and-results/
Follow the 2012 U.S. Para-Equestrian Team here.
The vision of the United States Equestrian Federation is to provide
leadership
for equestrian sport in the United States of America by promoting the
pursuit
of excellence from the grassroots to the Olympic Games, based on a
foundation of fair, safe competition and the welfare
of its human and equine athletes
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