Roberta (Bert) Sheffield & Nardando © Cealy Tetley Photo
August 22, 2026 – Aachen, Germany –
The Canadian Para dressage team completed their Grand Prix ‘B’ tests, the second phase of the team competition and final qualifier for the Freestyle to music taking place Sunday.
Jody Schloss (Toronto, ON) and Roberta (Bert) Sheffield of Lincolnshire, UK, who did their B tests Friday, have both qualified to go through to the Grand Prix Freestyle round, in Grades I and II respectively.
Sheffield, who had an uncharacteristic error of course in her Grand Prix A test earlier in the week, was particularly nervous Friday morning, eager to not make another mistake. She outlined that while able-bodied tests are designed to flow from element to element, with connecting steps in between, para dressage tests are less so, making them much less intuitive and therefore more difficult to remember.
“One of the problems with the para dressage tests is, in some ways they’re incredibly simple, and in other ways, are incredibly complex,” commented Sheffield. “Where an able-bodied test has an element of a movement linking each other together as preparation for each other, we don’t have that in the grade two para test. It can be quite difficult to remember which movements you’ve done and which ones you haven’t. I was riding this test absolutely making sure that I did not go wrong this time.
“I was really trying to ride (Nardando) forward, he felt more confident than he did earlier in the week. Because he’s a young horse, he can tend to get a little flat. Keeping him uphill can be more of a challenge than it would be with a more established horse. That will come with time.”
Jody Schloss and El Colorado © Cealy Tetley Photo
Grade I level Para dressage rider Jody Schloss remarked that the biggest improvements from her Grand Prix A to B test this week was accuracy. “I worked on visualization a lot (after my first test). I pictured in my mind exactly what we needed to do, and El Colorado (Denver, at home) executed perfectly.”
When asked what her favourite part of her Freestyle is and what she is most looking forward to, Schloss broke into her trademark grin and started dancing in her seat. “I love the music! And Denver’s attitude is ‘OK – Let’s GO!’”
Schloss and Denver scored a 71.917% and Sheffield and Nardando scored a 67.100% to each finish in 6th in their divisions.
Eleonore Elstone and Szecrecy HP © Cealy Tetley Photo
Langley, BC’s Eleonore Elstone and Ladysmith, BC’s Laura Hall performed their B tests Saturday. Elstone’s mount Szecrecy HP, owned by Rachel Blaney and Joshua Carlsen, gave a clean, accurate test which pleased Elstone as the mare is only seven which is young for a horse competing at a World Championships.
“We had a really good warm-up, and (Szecrecy) felt amazing while I was getting ready to enter the ring,” said Elstone. “We lost a little of that pizzazz in the ring itself. But this was her very first indoor show, in a huge environment, and the B test is a difficult test with challenging elements. All these pieces will come together with age and experience.”
Laura Hall & Istrano © Cealy Tetley Photo
Hall expressed that her horse Istrano was somewhat tense in the warm-up due to the cooler temperatures and windy conditions, and some of that tension carried through to their test today.
“We improved on some of the movements today,” said Hall, “I think I rode better today than in our last test, and I was also trying to remember to enjoy being here, to breathe and to just be in the moment. I rode my halts better, and my position was better. We will regroup from here and keep going. Being at Aachen has been an amazing experience, thrilling and exciting. I’m honoured to have been able to represent Canada and be part of this team.”
Team Technical Advisor Clive Milkins remarked how pleased he was with the performance of the entire group this week: “Over multiple days of intense competition for the team title in the world, all four of our Canadian athletes gave solid performances. For the first time ever, we have qualified two riders in the Freestyle. I could not be more proud of the performance that all grooms (and I deliberately say grooms first,) all horses and all athletes have given. Their contribution to Canada’s sporting life has been exemplary. I would like to thank everyone for their efforts and support this week here at the World Championships.”
For Sunday’s Freestyles, Roberta (Bert) Sheffield and Nardando will lead off the Grade II class at 9:30am, and Jody Schloss and El Colorado are in the Grade I class at 10:58am (all times local.)