‘My Olympian, but also my heart horse’: farewell to gold medal winner
2RHD7EJ Dressage rider Heike Kemmer of Germany reacts sitting on her horse Bonaparte after competing in Dressage Individual Grand Prix of the Equestrian event on 13 August 2008 at Equestrian Venue of the Beijing Olympic Games 2008 in Hong Kong, China. |
(Image credit: Alamy Stock Photo)
The double Olympic team gold medal-winning dressage horse Bonaparte 67 has died, aged 30.
The chestnut gelding, who was by Bon Bonaparte out of the Consul mare Cattleya, was owned and ridden by Germany’s Heike Kemmer, who said that Bonaparte sustained a “significant injury that made it impossible for him to continue his life”.
Heike said it was, nonetheless, “a very difficult decision to let him go after 30 wonderful years together”.
The pair enjoyed an illustrious career at top level, competing at two Olympics, two World Equestrian Games and two European Championships between 2003 and 2009.
Bonaparte and Heike won team gold with Germany at the 2004 Athens Olympics as well as the 2008 Games in Hong Kong. They also collected individual bronze at the latter.
“You were not only my Olympian, but also my heart horse, and we were allowed 30 great years together,” said Heike in her tribute to Bonaparte, whom she had trained since a foal.
“I could watch you growing up, accompanying [you at your first competitions], until then we finally became a team and thanks to your will to perform, it went uphill.
“It wasn’t just the success that counted, it was the great moments in between.”
The combination’s final competitive outing was Aachen CDIO5* in 2009, where they finished fourth in the special and fifth in the freestyle with 77.9%.
Bonaparte was diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2010, and officially retired in 2011, performing his popular Beach Boys freestyle routine one last time before embarking on a long retirement at Heike’s Amselhof Dressage, near Hanover in Germany.
“Thank you, my Bo, for 30 unforgettable, amazing and exciting years,” said Heike.
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