Lauren Barwick Finishes Fourth at Open European Championships for Disabled Riders

Para-Equestrian Canada is pleased to announce that Lauren Barwick of Aldergrove, BC successfully represented Canada at the Open European Championships for Disabled Riders in Soskut, Hungary on July 26-31st, 2005.

The only rider to compete on a borrowed horse, Barwick scored 74.55% in the Grade II Dressage, to finish in fourth place, just .11% away from the Bronze Medal.  Barwick’s mount was Famulouse, a 15 year-old Hanoverian gelding owned by Stephan Kiesewetter of Germany.

“I was very happy with my results,” remarked Barwick. “Especially since I was competing against the top riders in my sport.  To be able to achieve these score gives me great confidence for a medal in the near future.”

Sandra Verda of Langley, BC, who has been Barwick’s dressage coach of 4 years assisted Lauren at the Championships.  “It was definitely a challenging 2 weeks with only 6 days of training on our borrowed horse and extremely hot temperatures,” noted Verda, “Lauren coped well and rose to the occasion producing some very respectable scores against tough competition.” 

Barwick was named the 2004 Equine Canada Equestrian of the Year, and is recognized as one of Canada’s elite Para-Equestrians in International Dressage.  Barwick has represented Canada at numerous events including the 2003 World Championship in Belgium and the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens Greece, where she achieved great success with her mount Dior, owned by Andrea Taylor placing seventh in the Grade II Individuals Championship and sixth in the Grade II Freestyle. 

Barwick began her riding career at an early age, and was an avid Pony Club rider before she progressed to competing in three-day eventing and show jumping.  Barwick was training to become a stunt person specializing in horsemanship, when a stable accident in June 2000 left her a paraplegic.  Through an intense rehabilitation program, and her unwavering dedication, Barwick has had the opportunity to ride and compete in Para-Equestrian competitions throughout the world. 

In the Para-Equestrian discipline, each rider is classified according to their functional ability. They are assessed by trained physiotherapists and doctors who evaluate either muscle strength, coordination, or a combination thereof throughout the athlete's body.  The rider is then given a functional profile that indicates the grade in which they compete.  There are four Grades of competition, with Grade I representing the more severely impaired riders, and Grade IV representing the least severely impaired riders.  The competition within each Grade is judged on the functional skill of the rider, and not the level of disability.

Para-Equestrian Canada is the discipline of Equine Canada which is responsible for developing and implementing programs on behalf of the Para-Equestrian community, and administrating the high performance program for dressage riders with a disability. For more information about Para-Equestrian Canada, please e-mail competitions@equinecanda.ca