Britain secured yet another equestrian medal with team bronze in the Olympic dressage event at Paris 2024 but there is one more set of dressage medals up for grabs. Tomorrow, (Sunday, 4 August) is the turn of the grand prix freestyle, which decides the individual dressage standings. And there are three out of three Brits qualified.
Here is the lowdown on the five things you should keep an eye out for on freestyle day, which starts at 10am local time (9am British time).
Olympic dressage grand prix freestyle: key things to watch
1. Becky Moody has been the rising star through this Olympic competition, qualifying top of her group in the grand prix and producing a stunning test in the special to help secure the team bronze for Britain. Becky earned third place in the London International freestyle with her home-bred Jagerbomb with a career best 83.68%. She’s riding the crest of a wave, so expect her Sex Bomb floorplan to crown a terrific week, even if the podium may be just out of reach.
“My freestyle is going to entertain everyone,” she said. “The pressure is off, so you can take more risks and we’re going to have some fun.”
2. Carl Hester has set up a new freestyle for Fame, which he trialled at Wellington CDI in June. It’s “a bit French, a bit Greek”, and he said back then, “if I ever make it to Paris, that is what I’m going down the last centre line to”. Back in June, Carl was teaching Fame the moves in the warm-up (and still won), but you can bet your bottom dollar it’s pitch-perfect now.
3. The freestyle has always been Glamourdale’s showpiece for Lottie Fry. The world champions scored a personal best 92.38% for silver at the Riesenbeck Europeans last summer, and are set to press Jessica von Bredow-Werndl and TSF Dalera BB close once again.
Lottie has tweaked her “Best of British” music for 2024: “We’ve come to Paris with best of British and a French twang.”
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4. Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour was outstanding on Freestyle in both the grand prix and the freestyle. This new Danish pairing have never competed at freestyle together, but Freestyle’s own PB is 89.5% while Cathrine has cracked the 90% barrier before on Bohemian.
“I have a French take with Celine Dion in the walk, also a special song between me and my wife, and Formidable in the passage work,” she said. “I’m super excited, the choreography is a bit different, and gives a glimpse into my coach and my private life, to make it a bit emotional.”
5. Watch out for Isabell Werth who, in Wendy, seems to have another horse of a lifetime during an extraordinary career – “She combines the best characteristics of a few of my top horses,” said Isabell. Together the pair have done two freestyles, improving 7% to 89% for the second. If their trajectory is still rising steeply, watch out the rest. Isabell bagged a record eighth gold medal in the team contest; can she possibly add to this tally?
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Martha is an experienced journalist who is mad-keen on horses and dogs. Her reporting CV includes the Paris Olympics, European championships, Aachen World Equestrian Festival and World Cup finals. After growing up with assorted liver and white springer spaniels, she enjoyed 14 years with two rescue dogs. Now, her constant companion is Fidget, an extremely energetic and habitually muddy black and white springer. Martha has written on topics as diverse as a top horse’s clone to the best GPS trackers for dogs, as well as equestrian and rural matters for Country Life, The Field, The Times, The Spectator and The Telegraph alongside Horse & Hound.
