Top rider’s ‘heart horse’ to retire in special ceremony at World Championships
Cathrine Dufour riding Atterupgaards Cassidy in the grand prix at the World Equestrian Festival CHIO in Aachen 2017.
(Image credit: Peter Nixon)
Top dressage rider Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour will retire her career-launching “heart horse” Atterupgaards Cassidy in front of a home crowd in a ceremony at the dressage World Championships.
Cathrine, 30, partnered the 19-year-old gelding to 11 youth European medals, and they made their senior championship debut at the Rio Olympics – less than a year after stepping up to international grand prix.
The pair scored their first senior medals for Denmark – two individual bronze and a team silver – at the 2017 Europeans.
“It’s going to be very emotional for me, and I cannot quite understand that it will be my last ride with Cassidy in front of an enthusiastic audience – which he loves,” said Cathrine, who describes Cassidy her “horse of the heart”.
“I hope he gets the farewell he very much deserves.”
It will be the final time fans can see him in the dressage arena before he retires “fit and sound” to enjoy his senior years at home in the field and his usual stable at Cathrine and Rasmine Laudrup-Dufour’s Fredensborg base.
Cathrine and Cassidy won back-to-back young rider European titles in 2012 and 2013, which sit alongside their plethora of bronze and silver youth medals.
The pair enjoyed success in the under-25 ranks and stepped up to senior grand prix in autumn 2015. Less than a year later, they were on the plane to Rio, where they finished 13th individually.
Their breakthrough moment at senior championship level came at the 2017 Europeans, going home with three medals. They were among the favourites to reach the podium at the 2018 World Equestrian Games, but had to withdraw before travelling to the games after Cassidy sustained an injury in the field.
They returned to competition in 2019, scoring major wins at Herning and Aachen CDI4*s plus an individual bronze in the grand prix special at the European Championships in Rotterdam.
The Caprimond son, who is out of a Donnerhall II mare, bows out of the sport following countless top-level wins and an international personal best of 89.45%, which he achieved in the CDI5* freestyle at Stockholm in 2019.
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