Keysoe CDI 3*, UK
HEIKE HOLSTEIN SEVENTH IN KEYSOE GRAND PRIX AS IRELAND QUALIFY TEAM FOR 2019 EUROPEAN DRESSAGE CHAMPIONSHIPS
Paul Nolan, 15th March 2019
Reigning Irish national champion Heike Holstein and her ten-year-old home-bred mare Sambuca scored 69.326% for seventh place in the Grand Prix at Keysoe CDI 3*, Great Britain this evening [Friday, March 15, 2019] securing qualification for the 2019 FEI European Dressage Championships.
"I'm thrilled to achieve the qualifying score for the Europeans after just four international outings with Sambuca" said Heike "The mare is learning all the time and she has really grown up over the last three weeks competing at shows in Belgium, Germany and here in Great Britain."
With fellow Irish riders Judy Reynolds (Vancouver K) and Kate Dwyer (Snowdon Faberge) already qualified for the FEI European Dressage Championships, Heike's qualification allows Ireland to field a team of at least three riders and horses in Rotterdam, The Netherlands next August. Ireland last competed in the team competition at the FEI European Dressage Championships in Hickstead, Great Britain in 2003.
Kate Dwyer and Snowdon Faberge had not competed at CDI level in over nine months. "I'm really pleased with my score of 66.196% in the Keysoe Grand Prix" said Kate "We had a couple of costly errors this evening but Snowdon Faberge is feeling stronger and we plan to take in a number of international shows in Great Britain and on the continent in the next three months."
Gillian Kyle, chair of the Horse Sport Ireland Dressage and Para-Dressage High Performance committee said "This is brilliant news. We have a number of riders seeking to qualify for the 2019 Europeans and the plan is to have a squad to select from for Rotterdam. Our aim is to qualify a team for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics."
Result Keysoe CDI 3* Grand Prix - https://www.equineaffairs.com/viewpdf.aspx?filename=/Downloads/Results/RESCD1C1_yylyeulp.pdf
