04|2012 THE HANOVERIAN No 04| April 2012 Sport „The head must be clear and the heart open“ Weltcup Satisfaction FRH wins in Gothenburg Breeding Free jumping competition: Upward trend Sport A top young talent in Ingrid Klimke’s barn: FRH Escada JS. Photo: Züngel „The head must be clear and the heart open!“ Ingrid Klimke is filled with enthusiasm,“ I have so many good Hanoverian horses in the barn at the moment.” Klimke – a name that vouches for best classical training and a tremendous success record! Olympic competitor FRH Butts Abraxxas for obvious reasons holds the top spot on the list of favorites of the Riding Master; however she also greatly enjoys devoting time to her young talents. By Britta Züngel 2 The Hanoverian 04|2012 Sport pleasant peacefulness surrounds the small Hongkong as well as the European Championships A barn on the picturesque farm of Schulze Brü- in Luhmühlen. “Braxxi is a small and brave fighter ning on the outskirts of Münster. Team Olympic and he is full of mischief - a true personality. He champion FRH Butts Abraxxas stands in his box has already completed so many difficult courses stall daydreaming in total contentment. The Olym- with phenomenal ease,” so Ingrid Klimke who pic rings above her announce which horse eats greatly cherishes the incredible perseverance of oats in this stall. Dried mud on the blanket gives Hanover’s ‘best pony’ as federal trainer Hans Mel- away where the star spent the morning. Across the zer once called him. The only thing that is missing isle FRH Escada JS curiously studies the isle where in his collection of awards is an individual title. The horses are groomed and tacked up and where the pair was incredibly close to winning the European food is prepared. Down the isle privately owned Champion title but six rails on the final stadium- sire St. Moritz Junior nibbles on the last blades of jumping course dropped the pair down from 1st his hay ration. The door suddenly opens and a pe- place after dressage and cross-country to 11th tite person appears from a small and dark hallway. place. “Even today I do not know what happened. All horses seem to wake up. Abraxxas puts his ears It was just a day where things did not work out for forward, Escada kicks the stall door in anticipation us!” Seven months later Ingrid Klimke is still at - Ingrid Klimke has just arrived! You cannot but strife with her fate. “I do not know if I will be able Daughter Philippa is Ingrid Klimke’s immediately notice the special relationship she to ever forgive him for those six mistakes.” pride and joy. Photo: Züngel and her horses have. The fact that not everything always happens as pl- “Escada is just amazing!” anned makes this sport exciting and intriguing. Her Ingrid Klimke introduces the latest horse addition next big goal: The Olympic Games in London. “Be- with great enthusiasm. FRH Escada JS by Embassy/ forehand we have to prove our performance ability Lehnsherr clearly enjoys the attention she receives though. I hope the jumping will improve,” she from her rider, “Escada is just amazing. She at- adds with a smirk. The preparation runs the same tracts all the attention instantly and you just have way as it did four years ago. For Ingrid Klimke it is to love her.” The first successes have already been of utmost importance to keep Braxxi happy. “Part- recorded. The bay won her first M-level jumper nership and trust are a lot more important with class in Steinfeld mid March. “Once again Escada event horses than with dressage horses,” she says was in a league of her own! Incredibly secure, ride- and reports that - during the winter months - she FRH Abraxxas is Team Olympic able and fluid on course; the mare won the class sometimes sits on her horse with a ring around its Champion and European Champion. unchallenged. She is just a fantastic horse and I neck and without a saddle. And “just for fun” she Photo: Rau am overjoyed to be able to ride and train her.” Rider and horse found each other at the World Championships for young event horses in Lion d’Angers a year ago. “I have known Escada for a while and always found her to be very special. She looked like a painting on the racetrack in front of the palace. Her disposition is sweet and nice while I had my hands full with both my somewhat wild horses,” Ingrid Klimke raves about the calmness and relaxedness with which the mare finished the competition becoming Reserve Champion. She contacted the breeder Jürgen Stuhtmann while still in France as soon as she found out that Escada was for sale. With the support of Madeleine Win- ter-Schulze, the German Olympic Committee for Riding (DOKR) and additional partners an agree- ment was found. Escada moved to Münster in De- cember. For Ingrid Klimke a rather small fellow is the horse of a lifetime a horse that became famous because of his success record: FRH Butts Abraxxas by Heral- dik xx/Kronenkranich xx out of the breeding pro- gram of the unforgettable Fritz Butt. Together they won the team gold medal at the Olympic Games in The Hanoverian 04|2012 3 Sport occasionally rides a Prix St. Georges test with Ab- since 1998. In spite of her huge successes in the raxxas rather than an event dressage test “that is sport of eventing up to team Olympic gold in a completely different fun factor for the horse.” Hongkong Ingrid Klimke dedicates her time just as passionately to the sport of dressage. “I love best Who do we meet in the next box stall? Llanero by to have 50 percent dressage and 50 percent event Limonit/Matcho AA (breeder: Gerhard Schlichting, horses in the barn. I inherited my love and passion Großenwörden) came to Klimke’s barn in May for horses from my dad. And also the pleasure of 2011. The large-framed bay needed some time to training dressage horses,” Ingrid Klimke says. She settle in. He was frantic and difficult to handle. But competes very successfully in dressage. Dr. Reiner Ingrid Klimke would not be Ingrid Klimke if she Klimkes´ daughter participated in the World Cup- could not fix this, “I finally realized that something final in ‘s-Hertogenbosch in 2002. She won the was wrong in September. He is a powerful jumper World Championships for young dressage horses with a lot of ability but he requires a lot of pati- with the Westphalian Damon Hill by Donnerhall/ ence. The seven-year old is at the beginning of his Rubinstein in Verden in 2006. “The training for training with the long-term goal to participate in dressage competitions takes a very long time. The competition.” number of event horses has grown consistently over the past years.” The dressage horses actually Liostro by Le Primeur/Wenzel (breeder: Heiner and share a part of the training’s program of the event Renate Hormann, Landsbergen) has already horses. They canter outside and have extensive reached this goal. He approaches her with big, and turnout in paddocks and fields. “If a horse is me- Daughter Greta inherited talent and passion from Ingrid Klimke. lofty trot steps when Ingrid Klimke visits him at his ant to become injured then that could happen any- paddock. “If this is not a dressage horse, which where also in a box stall or on a horse trailer,” In- is?” his rider says with delight. The chestnut recei- grid Klimke rates the risk of an injury in her top ved the nickname “Naseweiß” because of the ob- athletes. Ingrid Klimke is not at all thinking of reti- vious snip on his nose. He sold on the Elite Auction ring from the sport of eventing in order to focus in Verden to Luxembourg and was trained by Fern- solely on dressage. The rider who was born on Ap- and Wetz and Birgit Finken before entering Ingrid ril 1 1968, comments, “As long as I am fit and en- Klimke’s training program. The pair won their first joy it so much, I will continue riding eventing, too.” Grand Prix in Wickrath at the beginning of March. Careful and realistic evaluation The licensed sire St. Moritz Junior by St. Moritz/Wie The stalls in Ingrid Klimke’s training facility are Weltmeyer (breeder: Helmut Krentzel, Lilienthal) is sought-after, “I want the owners to enjoy wat- to become a dressage competitor in Münster. “St. ching their horses compete for a long time.” Latest Moritz Junior is a fabulous horse, is very eager du- after a year she conducts a careful and realistic Ingrid Klimke enjoys devoting her ring work and is tremendously beautiful.” Frozen evaluation of the talent and the health of her hor- time to training horses. Her latest semen of the five-year old premium stallion is ses, “I devote a lot of time to each individual. There addition to the dressage arena: available to breeders even now. And not without is nothing worse for an owner than for a young Liostro. Photo: Wang reason: “Combining competitions and the bree- horse to cause high costs during its training and in ding chute is difficult. If a stallion does not have to the end just not be good enough.” In the historic worry about breeding, he can focus better on trai- barn building there are eight to ten horses in trai- ning,” Ingrid Klimke explains. For the Olympic ning in addition to the competition horses. “We Champion, World and European Champion bree- are a proven team of three.