Teams Announced for Equestrian Entries Dressage Youth Festival
An exciting assortment of Team competitions will take place at the Equestrian Entries Youth Festival at Taupo next weekend. As well as the traditional Area Teams competition, three young South Island riders will ride loan horses generously made available by North Island owners, the York Corporation InterIsland Challenge sponsored by Richmond Saddlery for riders on their own horses plus the exciting New South Wales vs NZL Challenge. The NSW team will be on borrowed horses also generously made available by North Island owners.
Lilly Jefferies (Upper Hutt) 19yrs University Student.
This is the first time Lilly has represented NZL on her own horse but was a member of the NZL team on borrowed horses at the 2018 Queensland Youth Championships. This is Lilly’s first season as a combination with her horse who also has the paddock name Lilly! They won Champion Advanced and Young Rider Awards at both Central Districts and Wellington Premier League events and then Reserve Champion Small Tour at Northern Hawkes Bay Premier League. The pair trains with Vanessa Way, Cooper Oborn and Andrea Raves. Lilly is studying for a Bachelor of Commerce at Victoria University
Horse: Lindisfarne Laureate (FEI level) 13yr old chestnut mare by Vollrath Lessing / Wicked
Rebecca (Becki) Williamson (Waitemata) 16yr old student
Becki has represented the North Island at the South Island Championships in Christchurch in the York Corporation lnterisland Challenge. Her team includes Don Tobio who she has trained since he was Preliminary Schnapps MH and Disney MH, plus she gets to ride her mother’s (Wendi) horses when she is away. Becki loves dressage and meeting other young riders. She has accompanied Wendi to a number of CDI competitions in Australia and her goal is to gain her own international competition experience. Recent successes include Advanced Medium Champion at Auckland Manukau Premier League
Horse: Don Tobio 7 year old black gelding 165cm (Advanced Medium) by Donnerubin / Gala MH
Tessa van Bruggen (Marlborough) 24yrs old Full time rider
Tessa is full time dressage rider/ coach/ specializes in starting young horses. She has experienced time based at a competition dressage stable in the USA. but is now back in Marlborough enjoying working alongside her mother Franzi who is a Grand Prix rider. He most recent success was Advanced Medium Champion at the Canterbury Championships in December and they currently have a commanding lead in the both the South Island Back on Track Advanced Medium Super 5 League and Zilco Musical Freestyle Leaderboard
Horse: Fiorenza (Advanced Medium) ; 9 year old Westfalian Chestnut Mare 166cm by Furst Jupp / Littana
NSW Team – Horses generously loaned by Rosie Richards, Liz Hutson, Janine van der Horst
Georgia Davenport, Age: 20. Levels Competed: Prelim – PSG. Horses: Regal Don Debonair and Regal Prince Black. I am from the Hunter Valley in NSW Australis and have been riding since I was 6 years old when I got my first pony. I got my first dressage horse Regal prince Black when I was 14 years old and he was 3 years old. I have since trained him through the levels to now competing PSG as a 9-year-old. I first became a part of the DNSW YR Squad mid 2018 for my achievements on my other horse Regal Don Debonair, who is now successfully competing elementary/training medium but have since placed both horses on the squad. Georgia is very excited to be a part of the team headed to NZ in 2020.
Kaitlin Martin, DOB: 21 April 2004. Student at Central Coast Grammar School – Year 10. DNSW Young Rider Squad (Divina) – 2018, 2019, 2020. Current Competition Horses: Divina (Damoura IMP) Competing Advanced/ FEI J – Training FEI Small Tour. Maxwellton Roger Rabbit NZ Competing Medium/FEI P – on market to be sold, training Advanced. SPH Bliss – Competing Novice – Training Elementary. I have been riding since I was 5 years old, but didn’t start in dressage properly until 2015 when Maxwellton Roger Rabbit arrived from New Zealand. My longstanding coach has been David Shoobridge, who has given me many opportunities to ride young horses, grand prix horses and stallions – including Fuerst Fantasy IMP at Equitana 2018. In the last 18 months David and Robbie McKinnon have also been coaching me with Divina which has been a great help, and seen improvements in my training and riding techniques with Divina and Bliss. I am very lucky to be part of the Trailrace Young Ambassador Program and also be sponsored by Boutique Equines and EQ Clip. I am very grateful for this support from sponsors and coaches and my parents, to really enjoy the Dressage journey I have been taking.
Kodi Tupper, Age 17. Based in Sydney, NSW Kodi has been riding for over ten years and is currently competing PSG and training Inter 1. She competed at her first CDI last year at the Australian Dressage Championships. Kodi recently became a member of the Dressage NSW Young Rider Squad. She has two horses, Duke, her competition horse who is a 10 year old gelding and Tiggy, a 4 year old gelding who will start to compete this year. Before returning to Australia in 2018, Kodi lived in Hong Kong for seven years and was a member of the Hong Kong Junior Equestrian Training Squad. During this time she competed in both Hong Kong and Australia in dressage, eventing and show jumping. Kodi represented Hong Kong at the FEI World Dressage Challenge in 2017. She also received sponsorship from the Hong Kong Equestrian Federation to train in Australia at Ryans’ Equestrian Centre which is where she developed her passion for dressage.
York Corporation InterIsland Challenge
North Island
Elementary: Willa Aitken (Northern Hawkes Bay) Geneva Star
Medium: Caitlin Benzie (Auckland) Libretto
FEI Young Rider: Brina Carpenter (Auckland) Leo Donna
FEI Pony: Samuel Gradowski-Smith (Waitemata) Heritage Don Quilla
South Island
Elementary: Charlotte Thomas (Canterbury) Te Puke
Medium: Lucy Cochrane (Canterbury) Gymanji
FEI Young Rider: Giselle Conway (Southland) Donatella MH
FEI Pony: Emma Copplestone (Canterbury) Dinky Di Doff
South Island Riders Borrowed Horses/ Ponies
Brooklyn Crowe (Otago)
Meg Johnston (Sth Canterbury/Nth Otago)
Kate Hamilton (Southland)
Horses kindly made available by Geraldine Kawabe & Otillie Upshall (Meissen), Andra & Rebecca Mobberley (Florentina))and Lorene Blundell (Midnight Cappuccino)