Where completion is an enormous feat for horse and rider, 73-year-old Canadian Robert Gielen finished in 41st place in a field of 37 countries and 129 starting combinations at the 18th edition of the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) Endurance World Championships 2022 Butheeb held in the desert of Abu Dhabi (UAE) on Feb. 25, 2023.
The Championships were originally scheduled to be held in Verona, Italy in October 2022 but were postponed in September due to safety concerns at the venue and the bidding process was reopened with an extended timeframe out to April 2023.
Aboard his own ‘More Bang For Your Buck’ (Doran x Forty Thieves), a 14-year-old Arabian gelding, who earns his nickname ‘Bang’, the Flesherton, ON, native was one of two North Americans in the competition.
“This was a world championship, so every horse here was the top of their country,” said Gielen when asked about the experience. “That makes the competition so special. This was my 4th world’s event, and each venue has its challenges. Here it is the sand, imagine running a marathon at the beach. In North America our terrain is varied, and much more technical than here, so we must adapt to the course during the ride.”
The 160 km track, which was run over six loops, is set against a stunning backdrop, and world-class facilities at the Butheeb International Endurance Village. Proper hydration and temperature control were optimised with multiple water points throughout the ride for the competitors to rehydrate, and mandatory health and rest checks, required for the conditions and the temperatures that reached 33 degrees Celsius during the day.
“Certainly, it was hot on ride day, but low humidity,” Gielen remarked about the heat. “Comparable to Florida where we train, but less humidity and the sun is more intense. The bottom of my feet suffered the most from 11.5 hours in the saddle!”
Endurance was truly the name of the competition. “It is mind boggling to me how horses can adapt to what is asked of them. I am in awe of Bang’s athleticism,” said Gielen “The goal for us was to complete the course, much like a clear round, and to decide when to push and when to back off, as illustrated by the completion rate of 43 riders out of 129 starters.”
The Canadians rode some of the track and finished just behind USA’s Cheryl van Deusen and JG General. “The strategy is always a balance between the comfort a horse feels in a herd versus the fact that we all ride individually,” said Gielen. “The competition here was between Bang, the trail, and I, not so much between the riders.”
Like all equestrian events, competing is still a team effort. Gielen expressed his gratitude. “I would like to thank the crew and groom team of Dina Riddick, Misha Green and Wendy Benns for helping us achieve our goal, and always acting professionally while having fun!” In addition to supporting Gielen and Bang they kept social media updated so Canadian fans could experience the day-long excitement alongside them.
With this accomplishment, Gielen is ready to pass the baton to the next generation of endurance riders. “This will likely be my last world’s. I am ready to step aside for the younger riders of Canada. I will continue to compete locally. Bang of course will be on rest for a while. The stress of 36 hours of travel getting here, the competition, the return flight and 7 days of quarantine all take their toll.”
He leaves the desert with a sense of pride. “I came to conquer this particular course…mission accomplished! I’m very proud of my horse, who is the real athlete!”
Photo Credit: Wendy Benns and Misha Green
On Friday during the Adequan Global Dressage Festival in Wellington, FL, Mathilde Blais-Tétreault of Montreal, QC, finished in third place in the CDI3* FEI Grand Prix Freestyle to Music.
Photo Credit: Cealy Tetley
Blais-Tétreault and Fedor (Glock’s Johnson TN x Negro), a 13-year-old Dutch warmblood owned by Laurence Blais-Tétreault, finished with an impressive and second career best score of 71.180% behind Thailand’s Suphakamol Vuntanadit (71.580%) and Spain’s Pablo Gomez Molina (77.865%), who set personal bests.
In a recent social post, Blais-Tétreault said, “[I’m] so incredibly proud of Fritz dancing his way to a third place in his first Friday night lights.”
Canadian show jumper Tim Wilks, who resides in the Henley-on-Thames, UK, rode Diamanthella VG Z (Diamant de Semilly x Hickory Mail) to a win during week three of the XXIX Andalucia Sunshine Tour in the CSI 4* Big Tour Small Grand Prix at the Vejer de la Frontera, ESP, on Feb. 25.
Wilks guided the 10-year-old chestnut Zangersheide mare, owned by IN Showjumpers, to her first ranking class win, jumping clear and stopping the clock at 36.89 over USA’s Michael Hughes and Kashmir van d’oude Pastory, who finished in second with a time of 37.31
Photo Credit: Equisportif
It was an important win for the pair in a field of 73 participants, with 20 advancing to the jump off on a course designed by the Italian course designer Elio Travagliati. Wilks and ‘Diana’ were the only pair to come in under 37 seconds.
The 28-year-old said after his victory, “I couldn’t be happier. I am so thankful to be surrounded by the best team, thank you so much for everything you do.”
For more information and results, please click here.