After the individual medals on Wednesday for EHL Daula II N.O.P., Demantur RS2 N.O.P., and Highlander Delight’s, these three horses have also secured a team medal at the Paralympic Games. The gold went to the United States, the Netherlands won silver, and Germany took bronze.

National coach Joyce van Rooijen-Heuitink was filled with pride after it became clear that her riders had won silver. “I really wanted to win; that was what we were all aiming for. We also knew it was possible, but now I am very proud of silver,” she said. “We also have a higher average than we did in Tokyo, so the level in our country has gone up again. I can't help but be proud to have three such cool-headed girls who are putting pressure on America here. How fantastic is that! Rixt just goes in as the last rider and does what she needs to do. She sent me a message beforehand saying, ‘Those first two were great, right? I’m going to finish it.’ How cool is that! I think that's so cool. Demi and Sanne also rode incredibly well and nearly flawlessly earlier in the day. If America is better, there’s nothing we can do about it. It’s like in jumping when you have three riders go clear, but the others are just a bit faster. Then you just miss out on gold.”

Top Scores for Dutch Ladies
The team led by national coach Joyce van Rooijen-Heuitink consists of Paralympic debutant Demi Haerkens with EHL Daula II N.O.P., Sanne Voets with Demantur RS2 N.O.P., and Rixt van der Horst with Royal Fonq. With her horse Daula (Gribaldi out of Kladaula keur, pref, prest by Michelangelo, breeders J.M. van Uytert from Heerewaarden and A. Barneveld from Zeist), Demi Haerkens achieved a score of 78.216%. Veteran Sanne Voets scored 76.567% with Demantur (Vivaldi out of Kaylee keur, prest, sport-dress by Elcaro, breeder A.M. Reuzenaar from Schaijk) at her fourth Paralympic Games. Rixt van der Horst completed the team score with 78.067% on Royal Fonq, bringing the total to 232.850 points and earning a silver team medal.

Team Bronze for Highlander Delight’s
The most significant contribution to the bronze team medal for Germany came from the KWPN horse Highlander Delight’s (Florencio out of Pijalda MW prest by Jazz, breeder P.G. van Berkel from Holten). Her German rider, Regine Mispelkamp, rode her to 75.500%, adding another medal to her silver in Grade IV.

Overview Page Paralympic Games

Source: KNHS, edited by KWPN
JM for KWPN
Photo: Hippo Foto Media