SIGN IN YOUR ACCOUNT TO HAVE ACCESS TO DIFFERENT FEATURES

FORGOT YOUR PASSWORD?

FORGOT YOUR DETAILS?

AAH, WAIT, I REMEMBER NOW!

Sidelines MagazineSidelines Magazine

  • LOGIN
  • Home
  • Current Issue
  • Subscriptions
    • Flipbook
    • Subscribe Options
    • Order Individual & Back Issues
  • Podcast
  • Marketplace
    • Business Ads
    • Directories
      • Barns, Farms, Trainers & Clubs
      • Equestrian Services
      • Real Estate
      • Stallions
      • Tack & Feed Stores
    • Classifieds
    • Horse Trailers for Sale
  • Advertise
  • Blogs
    • Show World
    • What’s Happenin’
  • Partners
  • Contacts
    • Contacts
    • Employment
0
Wednesday, October 19 2022 / Published in Weekly Feature

An Exciting Summer for the Future of Dressage

By George Williams

There’s something about getting older that makes time go by faster. This past summer may have gone by quickly, perhaps partly because it was jam-packed with dressage for our youth. For me, it started with being in Europe with some of our Young Riders—four, to be precise. Christian Simonson, Erin Nichols and Mackenzie Peer represented the U.S. in June at the Hagen CDIOY that’s part of the Future Champions competition hosted by the Kasselmann family in Germany. This amazing competition is as close as we come to a world championships for youth. It offers individual and team events in four divisions from FEI Children through FEI Young Rider in both dressage and jumping.

Then at the end of June, for the very first time, CHIO Aachen held a CDIY. Last year’s top NAYC placers, Christian Simonson and Miki Yang, had the honor and good fortune to ride down the center line in the famous Deutsche Bank Stadium as our U.S. representatives. What an incredible experience this proved to be! Two weeks later, Miki went on to win the Young Rider Freestyle in the CDIY at the Schafhofs Jurgendfestival near Frankfurt.

In August, for the fourth time, a USEF European Young Rider Tour member won the individual gold and the Fiona Baan “Pursuit of Excellence” award at the NAYC. The experience and confidence gained from competing in Europe by our young athletes is tremendous and hard to beat. I’ve written before about the importance of the NAYC and I cannot stress the value of it enough. The Junior Rider division was ultimately won by Ella Fruchterman, who also won the Amanda Johnson Trophy and who then went on to win the Junior National Championships at the Festival of Champions.

Fortunately, there are a number of individuals who share my belief in the value of the NAYC. This not only includes the organizers who take on this huge commitment each year but the unbelievably dedicated volunteers who serve as chef d’equipes for their region’s teams as well. This year, one of the most fervent of those volunteers, Debbie DelGiorno, was honored with the Patsy Albers Chef d’Equipe Award for going above and beyond in helping to recruit additional security gate keepers and scribes to keep the competition running without a hitch.

Truly one of the highlights of this summer was the Festival of Champions (FOC) held August 22–28 at Lamplight Equestrian Center in Wayne, Illinois. The FOC is the USEF Dressage National Championships for 16 different divisions including the Dressage Seat Medal Finals. That’s not counting the Para Dressage National Championships, which were added this year for the first time. I find the week fascinating, as it gives us a sneak peek into the future. The number of quality horses, some of which were American-bred, in the Young Horse divisions increases each year. This was an impressive year.

What struck me was the position and poise of our youth riders. It was very noticeable how well our youth riders are sitting in the saddle, well balanced with correct lines, good hand and arm position, and an ability to be one with the horse. In large part, this can be credited to the success of the Dressage Seat Medal (DSM) program. The program seems to be quietly doing its job, and perhaps doesn’t always get the fanfare it deserves.

The new format for the FEI Children test is a perfect complement to the DSM program as it, too, stresses the fundamental importance of building a good foundation with a correct seat, which allows for correct and effective aids. We are definitely seeing positive results from these classes, making it exciting to think about the future and in particular Los Angeles 2028! Some of the youth riders may still be too young, but others may be gearing up for it, adding their names to the ever-growing list of talented riders already setting their sights on the Olympics. Experiences like the NAYC, the FOC and the European Young Rider Tour can only help them find their way. We need to continue to build on these critical programs in order to continue to increase the depth of talent in this country.

The same is also true for the equine talent. With careful training and development, we will hopefully see a few (or, dare I hope, many) of the current young horses trying out for L.A. No matter how you look at it, we need to stay very focused, for if we do, the next five years will be very exciting for our sport!

Photo:

Awards from the Festival of Champions, including the Dressage Seat Medal Finals.

Photo by Ruby Tevis

Double D Trailers Info

What you can read next

Joanie Morris: A Heart for Eventing
Nick Haness: Creating His Own Paradise
G’Day Mate — Down Under’s Double Dan Horsemanship

Download Sidelines Digital now from your favorite app store!

Sidelines Magazine - Apple store   Sidelines Magazine - Google Play store   Sidelines Magazine - Amazon store
Update iOS app. Re-download Google Play and Amazon app.

Follow on Instagram!

sidelines_magazine

Sidelines Magazine
🤍✨GOING VIRAL WITH LOVE AND LAUGHTER 🤍✨ 🤍✨GOING VIRAL WITH LOVE AND LAUGHTER 🤍✨

📸Portraits by Jeni lo Brunner

Read now! Link in bio!
This past weekend Sidelines made an appearance in This past weekend Sidelines made an appearance in Franklin, Tennessee at Brownland Farm to watch the music city Grand Prix benefiting saddle up presented by Tractor Supply. 

Holly Bachor aboard her own Caddie R took the win!! 🥇🎉🍾 

🥈Second place was awarded to Lia Screnci and her own, Puccini Van Orti! 

🥉Our third award was presented to Katherine LeBlanc riding David O’Donnell’s, MTM Vinze! 

Congratulations to all! Thank you for having us Brownland Farm, it was one for the books! We hope to be back next year!
 
@brownlandfarmhorseshows 

#Sidelines #sidelines2023 #sidelinesmagazine #magazine #forhorsepeople #abouthorsepeople #brownlandfarmhorseshows #horseshow #equestrian #equine #horse #horses #franklintn #nashvilleclassic #saddleup #musiccountrygrandprix
Make sure to feature your Pony or Junior Riders in Make sure to feature your Pony or Junior Riders in the July issue of Sidelines magazine. Congratulate your rider or feature your products -clothing, ponies, ribbons, horses, tack and more! Email
editor@sidelinesmagazine.com
Prices starting at $225 for an ad!
Jan Lukens has always felt blessed to be an artist Jan Lukens has always felt blessed to be an artist, turning his observations into works of art, but it hasn't always been easy. “My biggest challenge starting out was fitting in to the equestrian world as an artist, not a rider. Although I spent the better part of two decades exhibiting 15 weeks a year at national horse shows, there’s a massive 
difference between an artist who paints horses and someone who has been climbing into the saddle since they were 5 years old, surrounded by all aspects of the horse 
world.”

A prolific painter working mainly in oils, Jan’s original and commissioned works of art hang in the collections of the likes of individual gold medalist Joe Fargis and Rodrigo Pessoa, as well as many other Olympians and owners. One of the most influential 
moments in Jan’s career was in 2014, when Ralph Lauren acquired two of his equestrian paintings. “I was still recovering from the 2008 recession at that time. There  is a unique part of a painter’s reputation that is based on who has purchased or commissioned his art, and when I promoted that sale, my phone didn’t stop ringing for a 
year and a half.”
For more information visit janlukens.com

Read Jan’s full article at the link in our bio. And never miss an article by subscribing to Sidelines Magazine! 

 #Sidelines #sidelines2023 #sidelinesmagazine #magazine #forhorsepeople #abouthorsepeople
Load More... Follow on Instagram

From Our Classifieds Ads

  • EQUINE HOMES REAL ESTATE LLC
    Equestrian and Country Properties Sue Marzo 508-450-6209 suemarzo@equinehomes.com www.equinehomes.com

    [Read more]

  • POSITIVE TOUCH EQUINE BODY WORKS, LLC
    Karen Markham 404-964-5456 horsept.km@gmail.com 30 Yrs Experience, Licensed and Insured

    [Read more]

Sidelines Articles by Email

Subscribe to Sidelines Magazine Articles by Email

RSS Sidelines Blogs: What’s Happenin’

  • Woodside Recognizes the Best in the West
  • Get More for Your Money with an Adjustable-Rate Mortgage
  • Longines Global Champions Tour of New York Returns to Governors Island

RSS Sidelines Blogs: Show World

  • Conor Swail Was the Best Bet in $15,000 CSI2* Markel Insurance Welcome at San Juan Capistrano International
  • Lillie Keenan Leads in CHF68,000 South Coast Plaza Welcome Speed at San Juan Capistrano International CSIO5*
  • McLain Ward Wins CSIO5* Longines Grand Prix at San Juan Capistrano International

Category

Recent Posts

  • June 2023 – Table of Contents

    Subscribe for just $9.95 or Order Individual Is...
  • Kayden Muller-Janssen: Equestrian Royalty to Disney Star

    By Kimberly Gatto   For every little girl ...
  • Kelly Prather: An Eventing Journey Around the World

    By Tafra Donberger   Sisters are often at ...
  • Lauren Pileggi Friga & Show The Bows: From Puppy Woes to Smiles and Bows

    By Jan Westmark Bauer   Lauren Pileggi Fri...
  • Kate at the In Gate: Busy With Photography, Riding and a New Direction

    By Jan Westmark Bauer   Kate Kosnoff, bett...

Copyright © 1987 - 2021 Sidelines Magazine
Privacy Policy · Returns & Refunds Policy · Hosting by Lucian Web Service
· Login

TOP
Get the Sidelines Scoop — your weekly look behind the scenes.Sign me up!