Charlotte Dujardin and Imhotep charge into the lead at dressage Europeans

Charlotte Dujardin and Imhotep produced the best grand prix test of their partnership so far as they shot straight to the top of the leaderboard at the European Dressage Championships.

The British pair took over from teammate Carl Hester at the top of the leaderboard with a huge 82.42% – beating their previous international grand prix record by more than 2%. Charlotte’s score also means that Britain have strengthened their hold on the gold medal position.

Their test was full of energy and airtime, with the bouncy Everdale son – who is still just 10 – relishing the atmosphere in Riesenbeck. They began strongly, with an excellent halt and half-passes full of cadence and reach, and were trending around 81% as after the opening trotwork section.

Imhotep – known at home as Pete – boasts a very springy, active passage and shows great ability to sit in the piaffe, although his abundance of power means the base can become narrow at times as he continues to develop the strength he needs to fully control and support that power.

Their canter tour was full of highlights: straight, uphill changes and tiny, expertly-executed pirouettes that earned 10s from the judges. In the zig-zag, Charlotte looked to have all the time in the world, as she maintained the balance and eased Pete seamlessly through the changes of direction.

Charlotte revealed afterwards that she had been aiming for a score of 81% in this test, having breached 80% for the first time in a grand prix with Pete earlier in the summer.

“He felt amazing. He has done his absolute best here today. Win or lose, when you do a test like that it doesn’t matter,” she said.

“There are still moments where it can be better, but that will come with more experience and him learning to control his power,” she continued. “For 10 years old he is amazing; usually it takes years and years for them to get to that point. I am still only riding him on half power – at the moment if I push for more and go more forward, I lose a bit of the balance and the frame and the contact. For him it’s all about getting stronger so he can manage it all on full power.”

Charlotte also explained that her Europeans experience so far has been something of “an emotional rollercoaster”, with Pete arriving in Riesenbeck with some travel sickness, and her six-month-old daughter Isabella also being unwell with a high temperature.

“I only got an hour’s sleep on Monday night as Isabella was poorly, and it’s all been properly testing,” said Charlotte.

The final British combination Lottie Fry and Glamourdale, will take to the arena at at 4.15pm (3.15pm UK time).

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