IRISH dressage riders are continuing to flourish on the international stage, and just last weekend Judy Reynolds and Anna Merveldt posted more excellent results at the the four-star fixture at Fritzens-Schindlhof, Austria.

Reynolds and Vancouver K, on their first outing since the 2019 FEI World Cup Finals, started with a third place finish in Friday’s Grand Prix after a brilliant performance which saw them score 75.000%. Merveldt was also in the line-up in this class, claiming ninth place with Esporim. As the very first rider to enter the arena, Merveldt and the 10-year-old scored 69.761%.

There was more success in Sunday’s Grand Prix Special when Reynolds took her second podium finish on the weekend after scoring 73.522% to take third. Merveldt and Esporim also broke the 70% barrier for the first time since their first international outing together back in March. A score of 70.255% saw them comfortably finish inside the top 10, taking eighth place at the finish.

Relentless run

Germany’s world number one Isabel Werth continued her relentless run of victories, taking the top prize with Bella Rose 2 on a score of 81.511%, while Lisa Müller (GER) finished as runner-up with Gut Wettlkam’s Stand (77.106%).

The result in Austria is a huge boost for Ireland heading into an important phase of the season. Judy Reynolds, Anna Merveldt along with Heike Holstein, will represent Ireland as a team in the FEI Dressage Nations Cup in Aachen, Germany in July.

Ireland also has six combinations who have achieved the minimum entry requirements for the 2019 FEI European Championships.