The British Equestrian Federation has today, 30 July 2019, announced the UK Sport National Lottery funded para-equestrian dressage squad which will compete at the FEI Longines European Championships in Rotterdam, Holland (21–25 August 2019).
This year’s team includes three combinations who will be contesting their first senior championships, while Sophie Wells and C Fatal Attraction will be out to defend their Freestyle gold medal from the European Championships in 2017.
In alphabetical order, the selected squad has been named by British Dressage selectors as…
Mari Durward-Akhurst (Grade I) with Glesni Owen’s Sky O’Hara
Nicky Greenhill (Grade IV) with her own and Gary Greenhill’s Betty Boo
Sophie Wells (Grade V) with Charlotte Hogg’s C Fatal Attraction
Georgia Wilson (Grade II) with her own and Geoff and Julie Wilson’s Midnight
Sophie Wells commented:
It’s a massive honour to be selected to represent Team GBR again with C Fatal Attraction, and I’m also really pleased to have my pupil, Georgia Wilson, on the squad with me. This is an exciting time for British Dressage ahead of the Paralympic Games in Tokyo next year, with such a broad range of talented horses and riders for the selectors to call upon. I’d like to thank C Fatal Attraction’s owner, Charlotte Hogg, for her support and my home team for all their hard work – without them, this selection wouldn’t have been possible.”
Performance Manager Georgina Sharples said
Many congratulations to all the selected combinations, their owners and support teams. It is wonderful to see three first-time championship athletes included in this selection – they’ll have the chance to experience a championship environment as part of the build up to Tokyo 2020. Also representing Great Britain in her eleventh major championships, Paralympic, World and European multi-medallist Sophie Wells, will bring a wealth of experience as will a highly committed and knowledgeable support Team.”
Jason Brautigam, British Dressage Chief Executive, commented;
It’s fantastic to see three new names getting the call-up to the team this year, alongside the extensive Championship experience of Sophie Wells. With qualification for next year’s Paralympics already assured, it’s great to provide opportunities for new combinations to make their mark on the international stage. Competition for places has been fierce this year, with a number of riders in line for selection, which shows the fantastic depth we have in the programme just one year out from Tokyo. Congratulations to the chosen four and we look forward to cheering you on in Rotterdam.”
Nicky and Sophie have also been selected with direct reserve horses, Nicky with Gary Greenhill and her own King Edward I and Sophie with her own Diadeem.
The British senior teams are supported by the BEF’s UK Sport National Lottery funded World Class Programme.
Suzanne Ashton, Founder of Everything Horse (Est, 2012), has a BA Hons in Marketing Management and a Diploma in Equine Science. Suzanne has ridden and owned horses all her life and has twelve years of experience in marketing, writing, design, SEO, and website creation.
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