“Championship win and a personal best”
World Class Para Dressage Rider, Emma Sheardown, kicks off the season in fine form … Jill Hoyland reports.
Following winter training, the competition season is now in full swing. Emma and Purdey’s Dream – or Eddie as he is affectionately known - already have the Winter Championships and Spring qualifiers under their belts.
Performing well at the Winter Qualifiers, Emma rode in the Open Qualifying Class. “I was very pleased with Eddie and he achieved 71.18%” says Emma, “this qualified us for the Championships at Vale View”.
Entering the Freestyle-to-Music at the Championships both Grade 1A’s and 1B’s were in one class. Emma is profiled as Grade 1A – a rider with the highest level of disability – with Grade 1B’s having a lesser degree of disability.
Eddie and Emma did not disappoint winning with a score of 73.63%. “I was really pleased as this was the first time I’d ridden to my new music and floorplan - and the judges really liked it!” says Emma.
Singapore paralympian, Laurentia Tan who won a bronze medal in the Freestyle to Music in Hong Kong also entered the class - Emma comments “I was delighted with our achievement particularly with someone of Laurentia’s calibre as competition”.
Personal Best
Emma journeyed to Manor Farm in Cambridgeshire for both the first of her Spring qualifiers and the first Para competition run at Manor Farm. “It was a great venue- they’ve a nice indoor arena with a lovely big outdoor arena for working in,” says Emma “Eddie & I scored a personal best of 75.9% so I was extremely pleased. Our marks included a ‘9’ for Free-walk. I was delighted with this as although Eddie has a lovely big walk, he tends to have a lack of stretch in the neck”.
In able-bodied dressage, this movement is ridden as ‘free-walk on a long rein’ with the rider letting the reins go to the buckle end to allow the horse to stretch. Para riders don’t have to give a long rein in the free-walk due to difficulties in picking up the reins quickly enough to get back into a good medium walk. “I had to experiment a bit with ways to get Eddie to stretch whilst keeping my reins” says Emma “I was really pleased as we’d gone from a usual ‘6’ (Satisfactory) to ‘9’ (Very Good)”.
New Faces at Squad Training
After attending her first squad training of the year at The Unicorn Trust – Stow on the Wold, Emma comments “It was the first one since the development squad selection trials last November and so it was a little strange - some of ‘our usual crew’ weren’t there and there were lots of new faces.
“It’s quite daunting when you first come onto the squad - both for riders and their support teams. You don’t know the ‘rules’ and of course you haven’t got the experience that you’ll learn along the way” says Emma “and of course you need to get used to new people but we try our best to make the new riders feel at home”.
The training weekend went well for Emma: riding the Championship test for her grade on the first day, they were judged by British Dressage judge, Waveney Luke and on the second day Emma received tuition form Angela Weiss. During the weekend, Emma also saw Jennie Killilea - the squad sports psychologist - “Jennie is really good and helps us through problems we may have and to improve our performance mentally” comments Emma, “Eddie also had the ‘once-over’ from the vet and farrier, they seemed quite happy with him which is a great comfort”.
Para International Selection
Excellent news! Emma has been selected to represent Great Britain at the Para dressage international in Moorselle, Belgium. She has been selected as part of a team made up of two other riders from the Development Squad and two off the Performance Squad.
“I’m really looking forward to Belgium” says Emma, “it’s my favourite international venue with great facilities and in a way it’s my first real international for Eddie. “Although we competed at Belgium and Hartpury last year, it was still very early days, but now we are further along the road and I can’t wait to get on the international circuit again!”
Kelly Feetham, Marketing Manager for Emma’s sponsor CWG Equi-Club comments “We are delighted with Emma’s success, her partnership with Eddie just goes from strength to strength and we wish her all the best in Belgium”.
APRIL
Success for Emma and Eddie in Belgium!!!
What a month April has been!!
As you all know Eddie and I were selected to represent Great Britain at an international competition in Moorselle, Belgium – 14th to 20th April. What a trip! – from beginning to end!!
The trip began with a lot of uncertainty thanks to the blockade by the French fishermen – it looked at one stage very doubtful that we would even get to Belgium! Anyway after numerous attempts to get the horses on a ferry and two check-ins on the Eurostar for us – we arrived in Belgium twenty- four hours late!!
The horses arrived at the venue at 1:00pm. Our late arrival meant that the horses hardly had time to breath before they had to be plaited up ready for the trot-up at 5:00. The trot-up is run in alphabetical order of countries but because of our delay they allowed us to go at the end – I joked that we were ‘Team UK’ rather than ‘Team GB’, this didn’t go down well with my team mates, and I think they are right, ‘Team UK’ doesn’t quite have the same ring to it! After the trot-up had finished ‘Team GB’ were given a training slot, although we didn’t obviously want to work our horses hard, we felt that it was important to give them a leg stretch and let them have a look at the arena ready for the start of the competition the next day.
Friday saw the first day of competition – the team test. I was on in the middle of the afternoon. Eddie warmed up for his test really well. I had twenty minutes warm-up time and was helped by Karen and squad coach Angela Weiss. Eddie felt really good considering his horrendous journey getting there but he felt nice and forward and soft. When my test time came he felt really ready to go! To my relief his good warm-up reflected in the test and we ended up winning with a score of 71.471% - I was delighted!!
The second day of competition saw the individual championship test and today I was on in the morning. Eddie didn’t feel quite so good in the warm-up, but I don’t worry too much about this as ‘touch wood’ he always seems to rise to the occasion once we enter the dressage arena, and he did! We won the class with 72.9%! I was thrilled with this because as it is the harder test it is quite usual to get a lower mark in the individual test than in the team test!! Eddie and I were also selected to be in the ‘team’, in the ‘team’ competition there are four riders from each country selected. They then use the three highest scores from the four team members from the team test and the individual test to make up the team – Team GB won!! What a proud moment, we were given matching rugs and then entered the arena side by side to the top of the arena, where we stood and the National Anthem was played! – What a proud moment!! Eddie and I also won prizes for the highest score over all the competition and the highest score in the team! An amazing day!!
It wasn’t over yet, the final day saw another win for Eddie and I in the kur (freestyle to music) scoring 74.278% . I was absolutely delighted! Especially as one judge, Nick Rodgers from Hong Kong gave us 80%!!! – Wow what a mark!!
What at unbelievable trip!! Considering the whole thing looked in doubt! I am absolutely thrilled with Eddie and our results!!
The weekend after Belgium saw squad training which was also a review weekend! My review went really well! My achievements the previous weekend in Belgium meant that I have been moved up to Gold level!! This level is for riders who are near to going up onto the performance squad!! I am really, really pleased! I have now got to focus on selection for the European Championships, selections are in June.
Team GB – From left to right: Erin Orford, Jo Pitt, Me & Sophie Wells
MAY
After our success in Belgium it was time to come back down to earth and get back to some serious training!
Eddie & I competing in the KBIS Qualifier at Vale View
Photo by kind permission of Paul Sands
My first competition after Belgium was at Vale View on the 23rd May for a KBIS qualifier, today Eddie felt really good in the working-in, but then unusually he didn’t feel quite his usual self in the test, he usually rises to the occasion, but he didn’t he felt quite flat – however we still won the class with 73.53%, so I was well pleased!! I hope that this score will have qualified us for the BD Nationals in September. Last year we didn’t go because of the buzzy atmosphere and Eddie was still very new to me but I think he is ready now. In preparation we have taken him to Arena UK a few times when they have had show jumping competitions on, just to let him soak up a bit of atmosphere and get him used to things like the loud speakers that you don’t usually get at your everyday British Dressage competitions.
I also received a letter a couple of weeks ago to invite me to the final selection trials for the European Championships at Hickstead on 24th – 25th June. The European Championships are held in Kristiansand, Norway on the 20th-25th August. I am really looking forward to selections, Eddie is going so well at the moment and we have got some good winter and spring qualifier results under my belt and of course our success in Belgium so we have got everything to go for. The selections will be the first time in about a year that I have competed against Anne Dunham and Sophie Christiansen, so although Eddie and I are getting good results I don’t know how we compare now to Anne and Sophie. In a way I think this is a good position to be in, because I have got good results behind me, but I have got no idea what will happen on the day! So I have just got to go for it!
Following on from Hickstead, we have got the international at Hartpury on the 13th -16th July. I am really looking forward to this as it is always a good week. We are going down on the Monday in time for our team vets to do a trot-up and examine the horses on Tuesday morning ready for the official trot-up and veterinary inspection on Tuesday afternoon. The competition then runs from Wednesday to Friday.
AUGUST
Emma is European Gold Medalist!!!!!!
The Para Dressage European Championships held in Kristiansand, Norway on the 21st – 23rd August saw my first GBR ‘Championship Team’ experience. I competed on a team made up of Sophie Christiansen, Jo Pitt, Simon Laurens and Sophie Wells, as well as nine times Paralympic Gold medallist Lee Pearson.
My reason for being selected was to get experience of a major championship! – Little did I know that I would come home with an individual Gold and Silver Medal!!
The first day of competition saw the ‘team’ test. The Great Britain team was made up of Sophie Christiansen, Lee, Simon and Sophie Wells, so for Jo and I as individuals this was more of a ‘warm-up’ test.
I was really pleased with Eddie and our first test, it was a little hurried if anything – but a couple of the judges commented on ‘good activity!’ He stayed nice and round through the test and I was really pleased with his stretch in the neck in the ‘free-walk’ – I felt it was the best he has ever given me!! In the grade 1a class there were twelve competitors, which from my point of view was great as usually you are lucky if there is four or five - so it was a real test of where Eddie and I are, and I was delighted when I heard that I had finished 2nd!
Saturday was the individual championship day, where we were competing for individual medals!! I was pleased also with today’s test and it wasn’t quite so hurried as yesterday – which was better!
I was thrilled with our score of 71.1% - which again meant 2nd place, today this meant that I had won an Individual Silver Medal!!! Wow!!
On the final day it was the freestyle-to-music test. With a silver medal under my belt, I was really looking forward to my kur! I felt that my test had gone well, but perhaps not quite as well as my trainers and team mates thought! When I made my final halt at ‘x’ the whole of team GBR stood up and cheered!
When I got out of the arena I was told by the steward to wait around as I was the last to go, and the gold medal winning horse had to be drug tested, and they didn’t know if it would be me or Sophie. I got off Eddie and Karen walked him round whilst we waited. Suddenly two of my friends Emma and Erin who weren’t competing but had come out to support, suddenly came round the corner screaming, put their arms around me and told me that I had won the Gold medal!! I really couldn’t believe it – Gold with 75.5%!! To get a silver medal was one thing, but after all we were sent for experience and I never dreamt that we would come home – a European Gold and Silver Medallist!!! - What an unbelievable trip!!
I am so, so proud of Eddie – what a sterling job he did!! And he coped remarkably with the ‘championship atmosphere!!’
As for Karen, this is defiantly her success as well as mine! She has worked so, so, hard with both Eddie and I – and at the end of the day I wouldn’t be doing all this if it wasn’t for her! – So thankyou Karen!!!
October / November
What can I say, it’s nearly the end of 2009. This year seems to have flown by as they all seem to do! But what an unbelievable year it has been for me and the rest of “team Sheardown”. I am just delighted with Eddie’s progress this year, he has definitely proved his potential and he seems to get better and better!! It seems ages since we went to Belgium – what a fantastic trip that was! And I never imagined that I would end 2009 as a European Gold and Silver Medallist!
As I said in my last newsletter regarding my success at the Europeans, I have so much to thank Karen for, she works so, so hard with Eddie. Then of course there is Nicky and Claire who I couldn’t do this without – unfortunately they often get left behind to run the yard whilst Karen is out and about with me! I am also grateful for the support that I get from my parents!! And then of course you, my sponsors!! Thank you so much for your continued support!!
The para competition season has drawn to a close for this year. My last competition was the British Dressage National Championships back in September. The BD Nationals isn’t my favourite competition, it is a very lively atmosphere and my experience in competing Spider there was never good!! However, putting all those memories behind me I had to go there with a clean slate, as after all I was on a different horse!! Eddie ‘coped’ exceptionally well. I am not saying he was totally happy as he felt extremely tense, his walk felt like we were walking through ‘porridge!’ But apparently he looked good and the most important thing for me was that he coped and kept his head! I was pleased with our score of 70.5% which put us in the top five.
It is nice now to have a winter of ‘training’ ahead of us. Karen and I are now training with squad coach Angela Weiss once a fortnight which is great! At the moment Karen is going to have a block of sessions with Angela as we are all keen to further Eddie’s training to the next level. I am also grateful to have Arena UK come on board, who are allowing me to use their facilities for these sessions over the winter!
I have also got some new dressage tests to learn as the FEI have bought in new para tests for 2010. Therefore my winter will be taken up with learning them. My plan is to do the same as last winter and use the unaffiliated competitions at Arena UK to work through the new tests and run through them in a ‘competition’ environment and pin-point areas to work on. The first para competition is a winter qualifier held at Vale View on the 23rd January.
Life has been amazing since becoming European Champion! - I have had a letter of congratulations from HRH The Duchess of Cornwall as she is the Patron of the BEF. On the Sunday of the British Dressage National Championships I was in the parade of medalists with my team mates. We were also alongside the able-bodied European Silver medalists from the Europeans from Windsor. That was a speical moment! We paraded around the main arena in 'golf buggies', with the paras in one and the able-bodied riders in another. They then played the National Anthem and read out what medals each individual had got.
I have also been invited to the BBC Sports Personality of the year tomorrow night (13th December) I am really looking forward to the evening - it is such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and it will be an honour to be in the company of our countries top sportsmen and women and to see some of the best receive their awards!!
Away from my success, I have also had a trip to St James Palace. It is the RDA's (Riding for the Disabled Associations) 40th Anniversary this year, and Karen and I were two of the lucky ones from our region to be invited to an evening reception hosted by HRH Princess Anne, the president of the RDA. Another wonderful experience! - very surreal!