By Eva Maria Broomer / AES
Photography: Horsepower Creative
The FEI-WBFSH World Breeding Championships for Young Dressage Horses are indubitably the highlight of the year for dressage breeders worldwide. These championships are the only FEI competition specifically dedicated to the subject of dressage breeding, and therefore a vital opportunity for breeders and studbooks to be recognised and celebrated.
It is also the first time to see up-and-coming stallions competing on the international stage, and an opportunity to see which stallions are currently producing the best offspring for the future.
It is therefore certainly a wasted opportunity, that the only British-bred, UK-studbook-registered horse competing at Verden this year was representing Ireland, in the five-year-old AES mare Newton Tiger (Blue Hors First Choice x Sandro Hit) who was bred by Anna Ross of Elite Dressage and ridden by the Irish rider Alex Baker.
A conversation with Anna Ross about Newton Tiger
Newton Tiger had an excellent start to her competition career at home, with major successes including wins in BD International Young Horse Classes at Somerford Park Premier League in May and the Wellington Riding Premier League in June. At Verden, she came a highly respectable fourth in the Small Final with an 8.7 for her trot, 8.6 for her canter and 8.5 for submission and perspective. We caught up with her breeder, Anna Ross of Elite Dressage.
Q Tell us a little about Newton Tiger’s mother?
I absolutely adore Smash Hit, who was an extremely talented young horse under saddle and qualified for the BD Nationals in 2006. She is the same age as Valegro and Showmaker, so to say the competition was stiff is probably an understatement. The issue with Smash Hit was that she really hated to travel, and after the sustained a career limiting lorry injury, it seemed the right decision to retire her to stud. She is by Sandro Hit whose enormous value as a dressage sire has yet again been proven at this year’s Tokyo Olympics... To read the complete article you need to be a subscriber
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