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Livamol NZL FEI Dressage World Challenge Team on Top of the World

NZL Team 2023 World Challenge team on Top of the World

The 2023 NZL FEI Dressage World Challenge Team, supported by Livamol, has convincingly cantered their way to the top of the 2023 World Challenge Rankings, heading off challenges from twenty – six countries across the world. Second to fourth placed teams also came from the same Zone as New Zealand.

The ESNZ Dressage selectors, Margs Carline, Karen Anderson & Barbara Chalmers showed their confidence in the higher level riders, Gemma Lewis (Canterbury) & Vanessa Baxter (Nelson) at Intermediate I level and Lynley Stockdale (South Canterbury) and Julie Fraser (Nelson) in Prix St Georges and this was rewarded with an outstanding team win.

New Zealand 1^st (241.491), Hong Kong 2^nd (237.673) South Africa 3^rd (237.353) Chinese Taipei (233.938)

NZL riders also scored highly in the World Individual Rankings in very competitive fields at each level. Canterbury combinations Sandy Fryatt & La Peregrina scored a huge win in the Senior II Division in a 123 strong field, Paige Fitzgerald & Greenmoor Euphoria 2^nd in the Youth Division from a field of 105, Lynley Stockdale & Leominster took 3rd place in the Prix St Georges (68 starters) and Gemma Lewis & Ruanuku R, 4^th in the Intermediate I (29 starters).

Sandy described La Peregrina’s win in the Treadlite Senior II class as being “Extra special.”
“I bought her as a brood mare nearly four years ago as she had experienced a tendon injury, but after she had her first foal by the NZL bred stallion Furst Hit EDH, she was sound again, so it was back to the competition arena. The foal is now a three-year-old and I have just started riding her and am very excited by the potential she is showing. Unfortunately, La Peregrina started to show effects of the old injury, so I made the call to retire her after a third place in the Advanced Freestyle at Oro Dressage by the Lake, so the World Challenge win means a lot”.

NZL Chef d’equipe, Christine Lovelady (Christchurch) said she was incredibly proud of the team and all the individual riders, many of whom had competed in less-than-ideal weather conditions on the day but performed very professionally and creditably for a wonderful team and individual victory and placings.

A huge thank you to event partners and sponsors of the event, Livamol, Treadlite, Quality Presentations, Sweney Productions, FMG Insurance, NZ Warmblood Assn, IRT – official horse welfare partners of ESNZ, Land Rover NZ, the Christchurch City Council Small Events Fund, the Christchurch NEC and the FEI who all made it possible to deliver a winning environment.