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U.S.
Dressage Team Takes Silver At WEG
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The
United States Dressage Team won the Silver Medal in Team Dressage
Competition at the 2002 World Equestrian Games in Jerez de la
Frontera, Spain, on Thursday, ending with a combined score of
5527. Germany won the Gold Medal with a score of 5642 and Spain
took the Bronze Medal with a score of 5403.
The
U.S. Team consisted of Sue Blinks riding Flim Flam (Hanoverian:
Wilhelm Tell x Cilia), owned by Fritz Kundrun and Dressage Sponsor
Corporation, Debbie McDonald riding Brentina (Hanoverian: Brentano
II x Lieselotte), owned by Perry and Peggy Thomas, Guenter Seidel
riding Nikolaus 7 (Westphalian: Weinberg x Elise), owned by Dick
and Jane Brown, and Lisa Wilcox riding Relevant (Oldenburg: Rubinstein
I x Havanna), owned by Gundula Vorwerk and Dr. Claus Crone-Munzebrock.
All four riders finished in the top 25 and will move on to Friday's
Grand Prix Special, the next round of the individual competition.
Alan
F. Balch, president of USA Equestrian, the National Federation
for the United States, commented, "I know I speak for all
our 80,000 members, and for lovers of equestrian sport throughout
the country, in congratulating those wonderful riders and horses
who represented the whole country so well in Spain. We are all
particularly appreciative of the horse owners also, for their
commitment. Everyone in the sport's framework contributes to making
this kind of success possible, from the grass roots to all those
volunteers and donors who contributed time or money to the effort,
to the United States Olympic Committee for financial support,
to the breeders, coaches, riding clubs, affiliates, organizations,
and competitions which encourage Dressage, and to the team coach,
Klaus Balkenhol, and the United
States Equestrian Team staff and administration as well."
For
complete results of all the events taking place at the World Equestrian
Games, visit USA Equestrian's web site at www.equestrian.org.
USA
Equestrian Inc., as the National Equestrian Federation of the
U.S., is the regulatory body for the Olympic and World Championship
sports of dressage, driving, endurance, eventing, reining, show
jumping, and vaulting, as well as 19 other breeds and disciplines
of equestrian competition. As
the country's largest multi-breed organization, the Federation
has over 80,000 members and recognizes more than 2,800 competitions
nationwide each year. It governs all aspects of competition, including
educating and licensing all judges, stewards, and technical delegates
who officiate at these shows.
VISION STATEMENT
The vision of USA Equestrian is to provide leadership for equestrian
sport in the United States of America, promoting the pursuit of
excellence from the grass roots to the Olympic Games, based on
a foundation of fair, safe competition and the welfare of its
horses, and embracing this vision, to be the best national equestrian
federation in the world.
www.equestrian.org
.