Dutch dressage team for London Olympics announced

Edward Gal, Anky van Grunsven and Adelinde Cornelissen are set to represent the Netherlands in team dressage at this summer’s Olympic Games.

Sjef Janssen, Dutch team trainer and Anky’s husband, announced the selections on Sunday (24 June) after the CDIO at Rotterdam, despite having said the announcement would be delayed until after Aachen (4-7 July).

The Royal Dutch Equestrian Federation (KNHS) confirmed the news to H&H.

The decision comes on the back of strong performances from all three riders in Rotterdam – they won the Nations Cup there – and means Anky will contest her seventh consecutive Games and will defend her individual gold and team silver medals with Salinero.

This will be the 18-year-old Salieri gelding’s third Olympics in a row.

Edward Gal, who qualified a staggering four horses to compete in London has been selected with and 11-year-old Ferro/Donnerhall gelding Glock’s Undercover, who is only in his first year of international grand prix.

Adelinde Cornelissen and 15-year-old Jerich Parzival have also been selected. However they must prove the horse’s fitness at the national competition in Ermelo on Saturday (30 June) to confirm their place on the team.

Parzival failed the first horse inspection at the World Cup final in April but was granted approval to compete on re-inspection. Since then, the Jazz gelding has missed both Dutch observation trials on grounds of fitness.

Inke Schellekens-Bartels with Hunter Douglas Toots or Patrick van der Meer with Uzzo will fill the fourth place as an individual. The final decision will be made after the CDIO Aachen next month.

The surprise omission is Hans Peter Minderhoud, who had qualified three horses (Glock’s Tango, Donna Silver and Whitney Van’t Genthof) but is not named as one of the four-man squad. A reserve has yet to be confirmed, but all evidence points to the loser of the head-to-head battle for the fourth place taking that position.

All horses at the Olympics will be stripped of their commercial prefixes under the strict advertising rules.

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