Wayne, Ill. – Aug. 26, 2018 – Competitors in the USEF Grand Prix Dressage National Championship returned to the ring for the final test, the Grand Prix Freestyle, on Sunday at the Lamplight Equestrian Center. Following a strong freestyle performance, it was Charlotte Jorst and her own Kastel’s Nintendo who held onto their lead and took home the overall victory.
Jorst and Kastel’s Nintendo, a 15-year-old KWPN stallion, held onto the number one spot throughout the week, earning a score of 70.217 percent in the Grand Prix and a 68.809 percent in the Grand Prix Special. Sunday, the pair left it all in the arena, dancing to their new choreography and freestyle music, which consisted of classics including ‘Over the Rainbow’,‘New York, New York’ and ‘La Vie En Rose’ to earn a score of 73.65 percent. Overall, they earned a cumulative total of 70.098 percent to take home the championship title.
Championship Ride: Charlotte Jorst and Kastel’s Nintendo at #FestivalofChampions
Charlotte Jorst and Kastel’s Nintendo owned by Kastel Denmark are the USEF Grand Prix Dressage National Champions scoring a 70.09% at the U.S. Dressage #FestivalofChampions “I thought my Freestyle went great. I had such a good time. It was the first time I rode to my new music, and it worked out really well… Nintendo was on fire. He loved the music and had lots of energy despite the heat. I just had a blast.” – Charlotte Jorst Watch their freestyle below 👇
Posted by USA Dressage on Sunday, August 26, 2018
Jorst and Kastel’s Nintendo, having represented the U.S. at the 2016 FEI World Cup™ Finals in Sweden, have garnered an impressive resume together in the past five years. Although Jorst took the summer off from training and competing with Kastel’s Nintendo, Jorst was confident the break improved their performance.
Moving into second place overall to claim the reserve championship was Nick Wagner and Don John, a 10-year-old KWPN gelding owned by Beverly Gepfer. Wagner placed second after his performance in the Grand Prix where he scored a 69.5 percent. Although he was in third following the Grand Prix Special where he earned a score of 67.468 percent, his 72.75 percent in the freestyle pushed him back up into second place. Wagner and Dohn John received a cumulative score of 69.073 percent.
Finishing the championship in third place was Jennifer Schrader-Williams and Millione. Schrader-Williams and Millione, the 15-year-old Danish Warmblood gelding owned by Millione Partners LLC, finished third in the Grand Prix earlier in the week with a score of 69.217 percent and second in the Grand Prix Special with a score of 68.17 percent. Their solid freestyle routine, which featured lively pop music, including ‘Sail’ by AWOLNATION, earned them a score of 70.7 percent to give them a cumulative total of 68.968 percent.
FROM THE WINNERS CIRCLE
Charlotte Jorst – USEF Grand Prix Dressage National Champion
On her freestyle:
“I thought my freestyle went great. I had such a good time, it was the first time I’ve ridden to my new music and it worked out really well. It’s so fun because you’re a little bit frazzled the whole time when you have new music because you don’t really know what you’re supposed to do next. Somehow it just kind of worked out and Nintendo was on fire. He just loved the music and had lots of energy despite the heat and everything so I just had a blast — it was a really really fun time.”
On her championship win:
“It feels incredible. I remember when I was an adult-amateur six years ago and was trying to come to the championships but I didn’t have a horse that could do it. I tried and tried, and had so many disappointments. I did the national championship once and it was a disaster — I did everything wrong, I rode the wrong course over and over again, it was miserable. I came back and got 8th, and now I’m the winner so I’m very happy with that progression. I hope I can continue that trend.”
On her progress in the sport:
“I think this whole sport has taught me a lot because I’m obviously a very optimistic person. I thought it would be very easy to just come out and do all this, and it has not been very easy. It’s been the most humbling thing I’ve ever done. I’ve suffered from tons of disappointment and I think that has made me grow as a person. I’ve also learned to manage expectations in a different way and set goals differently. It’s been a really great learning experience for me and I’m grateful I’ve been able to do that at my age because a lot of people just get stuck. Every day I wake up and think ‘what is today going to bring?’ so I think the sport has done a lot for me. I’m really grateful for it and the horses.”
On her choreography:
“I’ve had nightmares about my two’s, and I blew them, probably because I had nerves about them. Then I had a pirouette into a piaffe that I’ve been looking so forward to doing, and I succeeded with that. I think it’s so much fun to challenge yourself and now because this freestyle is so difficult, the Grand Prix almost seems easier to me.”
On her future plans:
“I’m going to try out for the Pan American Games and World Cup again, and I’m just going to keep plugging along.”
Nick Wagman – USEF Grand Prix Dressage National Reserve Champion
On his freestyle:
“I was happy with my freestyle. It was my second time riding it, so it was still a bit new for us. We went up centerline to do our one-tempis and blew those, which is uncharacteristic. That’s normally our strength so it kind of threw me for a loop, but we were able to fit them in again so overall I was really happy with it. For the heat and the humidity I thought he held himself together pretty well.”
On his choreography:
“Don John is really new at this level, so we chose to keep the choreography slightly simple just to not overface him and build confidence. I think that was a great idea because he’s held himself and composed himself really nicely this whole season. I think now we’re going to go home and add some more difficult choreography to our program, but I was happy with the results.”
Jennifer Schrader-Williams – USEF Grand Prix Dressage National Championship third place
On her freestyle:
“I’m very pleased. He had a lot of try in all of the work. I had a stumble coming into the first halt which just made me feel a little rushed going into the beginning of the work, but he settled and got more exuberant as the test went on so I was thrilled.”
On her choreography:
“My horse is really talented with piaffe/passage, so we were able to do a little bit more difficult maneuvers with piaffe-pirouette and the extended walk. His changes get a little exciting at times so we kept those lines a bit shorter. I’d like to just add a bit more degree of difficulty and double-pirouettes for next season and just keep pushing the envelope with him.”
On her future plans:
“I’d like to just keep gaining experience and see what next season holds. I’ll see how he progresses and then we’ll make decisions in the beginning of next year.”
Results: USEF Grand Prix and Intermediaire I National Championship
Rider / Horse / Grand Prix / Grand Prix Special / Grand Prix Freestyle / Total
1. Charlotte Jorst / Kastel’s Nintendo / 70.217 / 68.809 / 73.65 / 70.098
2. Nick Wagman / Don John / 69.5 / 67.468 / 72.75 / 69.073
3. Jennifer Schrader-Williams / Millione / 69.217 / 68.17 / 70.7 / 68.968
4. Mette Rosenscrantz / Marron / 68.391 / 66.979 / 70.85 / 68.124
5. Bianca Tota / Cadento V / 66.87 / 66.213 / 68.175 / 66.77
6. Patricia Becker / Freedom / 65.043 / 62.83 / 68.325 / 64.539
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: The above press release text is available for publication. These photos may only be used once in relation to this press release.
