Kiwi Olympians ‘train’ at Aachen
New Zealand’s Olympic-bound eventing combinations will take on some of the best at the World Equestrian Festival in Aachen, Germany, this weekend.
Mark Todd, Andrew Nicholson and Jonathan Paget – all of whom were yesterday named in the team for London – will be joined by Olympic reserve Lucy Jackson at the high-ranking three-star event, which has attracted 43 combinations from 10 nations.
Equestrian Sports New Zealand high performance coach and Aachen chef d’equipe Erik Duvander said the event would be used as a ‘‘training ground’’ to continue to work on team dynamics.
The team sees Nicholson on his Olympic mount Nereo, with Todd aboard NZB Grass Valley, Paget on Bullet Proof and Jackson on Kilcoltrim Ambassador.
Todd will also compete as an individual on Olympic team-mate Jonelle Richards’ horse Flintstar. Richards is sitting out the event after slightly injuring her wrist.
However, Duvander said he wanted her horse to experience the ‘‘big’’ Aachen atmosphere.
Richards has been training with Todd for the past six months, so he is familiar with her horse.
‘‘This is good mileage for Flintstar – it’s a big stadium atmosphere, and for all of our riders is good preparation for the Olympics,’’ Duvander said.
Up to 40,000 spectators are expected in the stadium to watch the competitions.
‘‘It’s good to get the horses accustomed to that type of environment.’’
Duvander is also worried about keeping each combination in perfect nick for the Olympics.
‘‘I worry about all of the horses in the last weeks as we build to London, but we can’t back down at this stage – we need to keep that competitive edge.’’
While he says winning the gold medal is not what the Aachen event is about, he knows he has a supremely competitive team.
‘‘None of them will be holding back. Our riders are always very competitive.’’
Also going through their systems will be the New Zealand eventing support crew, who will be with the team at the London Olympics.
‘‘It is about continuously putting all the detail in place to ensure our team will run as smoothly as possible at the Olympics,’’ Duvander said.
‘‘These are exciting times, but we are also super-focused. We all need to keep our heads down and continue to work hard.’’
New Zealand has an impressive track record at Aachen. Last year the team won silver, and in 2010 Nicholson created history as the first non-German rider to win the event.
In 2009 the team won bronze, and in 2010 they were fourth. Kiwi riders finished in the top seven in all three years.
The dressage and showjumping phases are on Saturday and the crosscountry on Sunday.