Canadian Olympic Dressage Team Improves World Standing

A joyous Belinda Trussell waves to the crowd following her Grand Prix ride on Royan II photo ©TetleyPhoto.com

By way of its ninth place finish at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, the Canadian Dressage Team improved its world ranking, moving into ninth position.

Ranked tenth in the world heading into the Olympic Games, the Canadian Dressage Team comprised of Ashley Holzer of Toronto, ON, Cindy Ishoy of Jerseyville, ON, Leslie Reid of Langley, BC, and Belinda Trussell of Stouffville, ON, placed ninth overall in the Team competition in Athens to move up one position in the world rankings.

All four Canadian Dressage Team members enjoyed strong performances, and placed within 11 spots of one another in the Individual standings.  Ishoy, who led the Canadian Team to the Bronze Medal at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, Korea, was again the top Canadian performer in Athens tying for 31st position with a score of 66.58% riding Proton, a promising 10-year-old German-bred gelding that she purchased as a four-year-old.

“I was proud of how he performed, he worked with me and really put his heart into it,” noted Ishoy, 52, who made her Olympic debut in 1972 at the Munich Games.  “The whole team did a good job, we had a great support system, and I couldn’t have asked for more.”

The lead-off rider for Canada, Reid earned a score of 66.08% riding Mark, a 10-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding owned by Deryol Andrews, to place 35th overall individually.  The reigning Pan American Champions, Reid and Mark also led Canada to the Team Silver at last year’s event.

“It was a great experience to be able to ride up the centerline,” reflected Reid, 48.  “I would have liked to score closer to 68%, but my horse was good and I was pleased with him.  He is young and it is a tough environment for him.”

In her Olympic debut, Trussell, 32, finished immediately behind Reid in 36th position with a score of 66.00% riding Royan II, a horse she purchased from her coach, Christilot Boylen, in 2002.

“I felt that Royan II and I performed a clean, solid test and enjoyed a mistake-free performance,” noted Trussell, who has represented Canada riding the 14-year-old Oldenburg gelding at the 2002 World Equestrian Games, 2003 Open European Championships, and the 2004 World Cup Final.  “I thought our score was realistic competing against combinations of this quality.  Royan II was honest in the ring, he did everything I asked him to do, and we had a respectable test.  I was pleased, we performed like I thought we would, and the overall experience was fantastic!”

A member of the 1988 Olympic Bronze Medal Team as well as the 2003 Open European Championship Team where Canada earned its ticket to Athens, Holzer, 40, earned a score of 64.67% to rank 42nd in the individual standings with Imperioso, her 14-year-old Dutch Warmblood stallion.

With regard to the overall Canadian Dressage Team performance, Trussell noted, “I think we all produced good tests.  Sure, we would like to be able to move up even more in the world rankings, but that will take time and a few more years.  We have to invest more time in Europe competing against the best in the world.”

Gwynne Rooke, chef d’equipe of the Canadian Dressage Team, echoed Trussell’s sentiments.

“Our Team was well-prepared and the athletes did the best they could do on any given day,” noted Rooke of Stouffville, ON, who acted in the same capacity at the 1988 and 1992 Olympic Games.  “This is a judged sport, and we have to be content with what we delivered.  We haven’t been to the Olympics in eight years, but last year we were among the top ten nations in the world to qualify for these Olympics, so we are definitely moving in the right direction.  Better results could be found through exposing ourselves to more European competition and we know this and are addressing it, but it takes big bucks.”

“The bottom line is that we need to get to Europe and compete against the best in the world for a period of time,” added Ishoy with regard to improving Canada’s overall world standing.  “In my case personally, I feel that Proton has the same quality as some of the top horses in Europe and there are many other promising horses in Canada, but we have got to get out in front of the international judges on a regular basis.  We need to sit down, make a plan and get a program going where there is funding to help.”

Held over two consecutive days at the Markopoulo Olympic Equestrian Center, the Team competition saw Canada finish less than one half of a percentage point behind eighth-placed Austria.  Germany claimed the Team Gold as they have at every Olympics since 1976, while Spain captured its first-ever Olympic medal in dressage, the Team Silver.  In a repeat of the Sydney Olympics, the United States Dressage Team earned the Bronze.