PrintThanks to the efforts of the show management team from the Gold Coast Dressage Association and the Wellington Dressage Classic Association, the 2012 Dressage season kicked off with three amazing CDI events in January and 2 Paralympic Qualifiers. With world-class dressage riders providing an air of European competition, the Gold Coast Dressage Association’s Opener CDI W/CDEDI3* January 19-22, 2012, the Wellington Classic Sunshine Challenge CDI3*/CPEDI3* January 25-29, 2012 and the 2012 Palm Beach leg of the prestigious World Dressage Masters presented by the Axel Johnson Group set the tone for a fantastic Wellington dressage season.
Wellington Classic Dressage once again hosted the World Dressage Masters Palm Beach with International Polo Club as Presenting Sponsor. The Masters proved to be a record setting event for the Jim Brandon Equestrian Center, with dressage star Steffen Peters setting the dressage ring on fire with record breaking scores, while the number of spectators also proved to be at an all time high. “This year’s Masters was one for the record books,” said John Flanagan of Wellington Classic Dressage, Gold Coast Dressage, International Horse Sport, and one of the organizers of the WDM Palm Beach. “The competition was amazing and a record number of people were able to watch this event live, which is a great testament to the strength of our sport in South Florida and the United States.”
Flanagan added that technology played an important role in audience participation during the Masters, including the ability to stream the rides to a smart phone. “This year we featured a live video stream which was so inundated by viewers it actually crashed the USEF website. We also featured high definition monitors at various locations in the area to provide each viewer with optimal angles of each movement and to replay clips from each ride.”
An added highlight of the World Dressage Masters was an up-close-and-personal moment of each rider being interviewed after their ride. “The crowd really enjoyed hearing the excitement in each rider’s voice as they spoke about their ride, and I think it brought them even closer to the action of an international dressage competition,” said Flanagan.
The 2012 World Dressage Masters Palm Beach is the only North American leg in the Masters series and was presented by the International Polo Club of Wellington, which hosted a spectacular competitors party during the event. Held poolside at the Mallet Grill on the Polo Club grounds, the Competitors party featured an exquisite ice sculpture of the WDM logo, Venetian cuisine, mermaids, showgirls and fire dancers. The ambiance and excitement of the Competitors party set the tone for the entire weekend, which culminated with the Exquis Grand Prix Freestyle. Steffen Peters and Akiko Yamazaki’s Ravel beat out Britain’s Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro by the narrowest of margins, only .05%, to capture the win for the second year in a row. During the Grand Prix Special on Saturday afternoon Adrienne Lyle and Wizard easily captured the win, with Heather Blitz and Paragon placing second and showing off some impressive movements for a young Grand Prix horse.
