WELLINGTON, Fla.--Tinne Vilhelmson Silfvén of Sweden and Ashley Holzer placed first and second in the CDI3* Grand Prix Special on Saturday, Feb. 10 after two extraordinary performances from less than ideal starts at the Global Dressage Festival.

Tinne Vilhelmson Silfvén on Hyatt (Photo by Susan Stickle)Both Vilhelmson Silfvén and Holzer had to contend with tension but clawed back the marks during their tests from low starts.

Vilhelmson Silfvén’s ride on Hyatt began with miscommunications on the first centerline, resulting in an opening trending score of 35% from the panel of five judges.

By the end of her test, the big screen flashed up her final winning score of 70.596%.

Holzer finished just 0.022 percentage points behind Vilhelmson Silfvén, scoring 70.574% on Hansel.

The 11-year-old gelding had gotten frightened going around the edge and Holzer had to work throughout the test to manage the powerful horse’s tension.

Australia’s Jemma Heran posted a new personal best of 70.319% on Saphira Royal 2 to place third, meaning that the podium finishers represented three different continents.

 

VILHELMSON SILVEN'S score is her highest yet with the inexperienced 12-year-old mare.

This is their third big tour CDI together and only their second Grand Prix Special since sourcing Hyatt at Hof Kasselmann in Germany.

“The entry was a bit exciting and I kinda did all the movements before the first salute because she was a little bit afraid to go in,” said Vilhelmson Silfvén, who is a regular on the AGDF winter circuit. “But she has to learn. I got a more difficult start than I expected, but I’m very pleased that I could ride without really any mistakes even though she was focused on more than just me. She’s still so eager to do what I want, but it’s more difficult to keep her steady and in the frame that I want because she gets a little excited."

“My hopes are big for her, but I want to take it slow and careful,” she said. “It’s a big responsibility to have such an ambitious horse, and I want to treat that ambition well and give her good experiences. She is so soft and athletic and electric; she can do anything with her body.”

“I want to give her experience and for me to learn about her, like how long to warm up, how to go in, and what to do when she does that in the ring,” said the seven-time Olympian. “We want to make smart choices with her. I like her a lot. Developing horses like this is what I live for, it’s so fun.”

In the Intermediate I CDI1*, Frederic Wandres of Germany made it two wins from two starts on the 9-year-old Fürstenball mare Floricella, even though he has only just started riding her.

With her owner Alessa Marie Maass, Floricella was part of the gold medal winning German team at the 2022 European Championships for Children in Hungary.

Under Wandres, she led Friday’s Prix St. Georges at her first senior CDI.

On Saturday the pair topped the Intermediate I with 70.971% and were the judges’ unanimous choice from the 10 starters.

Two women posted personal best scores at the level with their horses to place second and third.

Natalia Bacariza Danguillecourt of Spain scored 67.823% to place second on Dhannie Ymas, and Australia’s Kate Kyros was third on Intro K with 67.647%.

Wandres has only ridden Floricella a handful of times as she recently arrived from Europe and is in Florida to be sold.

“She’s a very lovely mare, so pretty and elegant,” said Wandres, who rides for Hof Kasselmann and is based in Wellington during season and Germany for the remainder of the year. “When she’s under saddle she really wants to present herself. She’s still a young small tour horse but she handled it pretty good."

“I had a little mistake in the three tempis, but it was just a green mistake. She has the ability to show all the exercises very nicely, so if she doesn’t sell I’m happy to develop this very good international small tour horse. I’m still defending my number one position in the FEI small tour rankings,” said the 36-year-old, who trains daily with his partner Lars Ligus, as well as online training sessions with the German team coach, Monica Theodorescu.

Wandres first came to AGDF when Europe shut down for Covid, but he and his team saw such tremendous improvement in the horses that they decided Wellington should be a permanent fixture on their calendar.

“Where else in the world can you drive just nine minutes to a CDI every two weeks?” he said. “And even if you don’t want to show international, you can always show national. Here you have so many options to develop your horses in a quiet way without stressing them through long drives, and the weather is beautiful. The atmosphere is big and there are a lot of spectators so they get used to everything. We get a lot of competition routine practice here, and then back in Europe we are really ready to show.”

Wandres also has his grand prix horse Bluetooth in Florida.

He plans to compete him at the CDI5* show during AGDF 10 with an eye on potential selection for the German team for the Paris Olympics this summer.

Ben Ebeling stepped down a level with his long-time grand prix partner Illuster Van De Kampert for a confidence-boosting performance in the Intermediate A CDI2*, scoring 67.765% to win.

The score would have been significantly higher if not for a costly startle in one piaffe that sent the horse skittering backwards, costing dearly across two sets of marks.

This is the pair’s fifth consecutive year competing at AGDF.