Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025

Marek Finishes On Top In Friendly Rivalry At AGDF

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Wellington, Fla.—Jan. 24

There’s a bit of a friendly rivalry happening between U.S. riders Anna Marek and Kevin Kohmann.

During the press conference following the CDI-W Grand Prix freestyle Friday night at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival, the two joked when asked about their plans for the season.

“Try to beat Kevin,” Marek said.

And when asked the same question, Kohmann answered with a grin: “It’s a complicated question, but [to] make it really simple, beat Anna is the goal.”

It was Marek who finished atop the scoreboard Friday, putting in a strong test with Fire Fly to score 77.75% to just edge out Kohmann and Dünensee on a 77.54%. Germany’s Felicitas Hendricks, who won the Grand Prix Thursday, had a couple mistakes with Drombusch OLD to finish third on a 76.36%.

Anna Marek and Fire Fly. Kimberly Loushin Photos

Marek rode to music from “Stranger Things,” which was picked out by the gelding’s owner Janet Simile and suits Marek’s preference for dramatic, emotional music.

“This freestyle is really fun to ride,” Marek said. “I love the music. It’s very different than [my other horse] Fayvel’s freestyle. It’s dramatic, and this is my favorite freestyle venue to ride at. [There were] not as many people today because of the weather, but you can usually feel the atmosphere, and the horses get excited in a really good way.”

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She added that she was pleased with how the 15-year-old Dutch Warmblood (Briar Junior—Arieka, OO Seven) bred by A. Geessink, performed Thursday in the Grand Prix, where he was second, saying that it was one of his better tests.

“It keeps getting a little bit better, and then I knew today for the freestyle that he’d get pumped up,” she said. “But it always works for me now that he and I are really a pair and have been together for so long. So it was really fun, the whole ride.”

Anna Marek was thrilled with Fire Fly’s test.

Fire Fly had competed at Grand Prix before Marek got the ride three-and-a-half years ago, but because he can be a bit sensitive and spooky, she wanted to take her time to solidify their partnership. They’ve steadily improved, and they were named to the U.S. team for the 2023 Pan American Games (Chile), where they won team gold and individual bronze.

“It’s taken me and him a little while to kind of get on the same page about things, but now I feel like he’d do anything for me,” she said. “We didn’t really have the plan, but then we ended up qualifying and going to Pan Ams, and then that was one of the best times of my life, because it was completely unexpected to win the bronze medal. That was a feeling I’d never forget, and also that I never expected the horse to do for me.”

Watch their winning freestyle, courtesy of Wellington International:

Kohmann has similarly been building a strong partnership with “Denzel,” a 16-year-old Hanoverian (Dancier—Doublette, Davignon I), bred by Monika Fartmann and owned by Diamante Farms. He first started riding the gelding when Denzel was 5 because he was too big for owner Devon Kane. They put him up for sale, but he never left. Kohmann’s trainer, Christoph Koschel, then competed him and advised they keep Denzel, so Kohmann took over the ride again in 2023.

“Thank God I listened to Christoph, who was absolutely right,” Kohmann said.

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Kevin Kohmann and Dünensee.

Kohmann admitted he had some nerves before performing his freestyle to dance music, because Denzel is freshly clipped and this week’s unseasonably cool weather in Florida has affected many horses, but the gelding pulled through with a strong performance.

“I was very, very happy,” he said. “It wasn’t the highest score we’ve ever had, but it was, for me, the best ride. I came out of there, and I was just super thrilled. My horse is finally walking; we got that over the last few shows. That was always not our strength, but now it actually has turned out to be quite good, so I’m thrilled.”

Kevin Kohmann waves to the crowd.

Hendricks said she thought that the cold weather may have contributed to her mistakes, as the 14-year-old Oldenburg (Destano—Wicomaggia, Dimaggio), bred by Ralf Stienke, was spicier than normal.

“I had to back off a little bit during the test … which led to a couple mistakes,” she said. “I had the feeling right after the test that he could just do it three more times, and then the third time would probably be the best one. But I’d rather have a horse with too much energy than a horse with no energy.”

Felicitas Hendricks and Drombusch OLD.

Friday night’s class served as a qualifier for the U.S. Equestrian Open of Dressage, which will continue through the year until a final at the Desert International Horse Park (California) in November. Hendricks currently leads the standings, with Jennifer Williams as the highest-placed U.S. rider in third. All three of Friday’s podium finishers indicated they are targeting the final, though Hendricks said her attendance is dependent on her schedule, as she’s based in Germany most of the year.

Evelyn Eger of Germany was fourth with Tabledance 3 on a score of 75.34%.
Sweden’s Tinne Vilhelmson Silfvén and Devanto were fifth on a 74.85%.
Jennifer Williams and Joppe K were sixth on 74.26%.

Results.

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