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FEI European Jumping Championship for Children
Wednesday, July 16th, 2008
For the second consecutive year Great Britain was proclaimed European Champion at the 2008 FEI European Jumping Championship for Children, held at the Markopoulo Olympic Equestrian Center in Athens, Greece from 10 to 13 July 2008.
Team members Lauren Edwards on Mr. Bon Ami, Chloe Aston on Cathleen 16, Olivia Dales on Arabella IV, and 2007 individual champion, Graham Gillespie on Ara 12, had a single bar down in the two-round team competition and won the gold medal. For Graham Gillespie and Chloe Aston that was a second team gold.
“We didn’t start well in the first round,” British chef d’ équipe Mike Florence said. “I knew we were going to be medal contenders, but I never thought we’d place first. The other teams were also very strong. The second round was much better for us and that’s why we won. The level of the riders and horses was higher than last year in Istanbul. It’s a great opportunity for the children to ride in the fantastic stadium of the Olympic Equestrian Center.”
“This championship is really important for the future of horsesport,” commented Corinne Braker, Great Britain team trainer. “The experience gained by the children in a championship like this is invaluable.”
Two teams, Turkey and Italy, competed in the jump off, fighting for the second place. Both had eight penalties after the two rounds of the team competition. Italy (Filippo Marco Bologni on Coriana; Giampiero Garofalo on Ombre della Baia; Stefania Fida on Manitou d’or; and Francesca Arioldi on Baldo della Loggia) went clear and with a time of 116s78 won the silver. Turkey (Derin Demirsoy on Trendy B; Omer Ersin on Ucaranda T; Melanie Cosar on Charcolle Z; Yusuf Huysal on Arthur van de Helle) were also clear but went slightly slower (118s65) and had to settle for bronze.
Austria and Switzerland tied for fourth place. Home team Greece placed sixth along with Portugal, with equal 20 penalties.
Italian Francesca Arioldi is the 2008 FEI European Champion for Children aboard the 10-year old Baldo della Loggia. A 2007 national champion, she was the only rider out of the 48 starters to manage five clear rounds in the individual competition the FEI European Jumping Championship for Children held at the Markopoulo Olympic Equestrian Center in Athens (GRE).
Three riders had tied for runner-up position on the equal score of four penalties. Second place was therefore resolved through a jump off between last year’s European Children Champion, Great Britain’s Graham Gillepsie on Ara 12, Lauren Edwards from Great Britain on Mr. Bon Ami, and Belgian rider Vicky van de Poel on Whisper. Gillepsie was the fastest with a time of 38,92 and a clear round and took the silver medal. Belgian rider Van de Poel was also clear with a time of 39,80 and took the bronze. Edwards had two bars down and placed fourth.
Four riders were equal fifth on 8 penalties: home rider, Panayiots Fratzis on Life Time; Yusuf Huysal (TUR) on Arthur van de Helle; Chloe Aston (GBR) on Cathleen 16; Giampiero Garofalo (ITA) on Ombre della Baia; and Lucie Krulichova (CZE) on Nikola.
Eighteen riders took part in the farewell competition, held before the Final. Eight went clear and went on for a jump off. Belgian rider Christophe Leutenez on Ricardo du Belluno placed first thanks to his unique clear round in the jump off.
