Image for illustration purposes: Image credit Daisy Jackson Dressage www.djdressage.co.uk
The British Dressage Under 21 Selectors Judy Harvey, Leanne Wall and Nikki Herbert have unveiled their final selected riders for the Team NAF Junior and Young Rider squads at the upcoming FEI European Championships in St Giovanni, Italy, 24 – 28 July 2019.
Juniors
Two riders will travel to Italy and compete as individuals at the Championships:
Jessica McConkey (17) from Oxfordshire with her own Lady Gaga (dark bay, mare, 10yrs, 16.2hh, Quarterback x Solos Landwind).
Charlotte McDowall (17) from Gloucestershire with her own Alivia (black, mare, 14yrs, 16hh, Olivi x Roemer).
Young Riders
The Selectors have chosen three riders who will compete as a team and individuals:
Rebecca Bell (19) from Oxfordshire with Caroline Bell’s Nibeley Union Hit (dark bay, mare, 12yrs, 16.1hh, Nibley Union Jack x Sandro Hit).
Alex Hellings (19) from Derbyshire with her own Uvender V (bay, gelding, 18yrs, 16hh, Krack C x Juventus).
Rebecca Swain (19) from Surrey with her own Bon Jovi (chestnut, gelding, 13yrs, 16.2hh, s. Krack C).
The Pre-European Team Camp will be held on Tuesday 16 and Wednesday 17 July at Kilbees Farm in Berkshire, which is compulsory for all selected riders/horses.
International Director Judy Harvey also confirmed that Britain will not be sending any riders to the FEI U25 European Championships at the same venue. She commented;
As selectors our role is to monitor performance against the Selection Policy and then select combinations who can be competitive in a Championship environment, where the standards are exceptionally high and the pressure intense.”
She added;
We have to make sure that every place awarded has the potential to win a medal, which makes securing a place very tough. This does mean that we need sufficient combinations performing at the required level to form a competitive team, otherwise we will look to send those who can still compete as individuals instead.
The selected riders and the teams behind them have put in a great deal of hard work and dedication to achieve this opportunity,”
she continued.
Our Junior representatives both performed well at the weekend at Hickstead, while the Young Rider trio also has proved themselves admirably this spring. We’re in a period of transition with the Under 25 squad but have high hopes for developing this area further in the next few years. I wish the five selected riders ‘buona fortuna’ and look forward to following their performances in Italy.”
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.