Wayne, Ill. – Aug. 26, 2022 – Competition at the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions in Wayne, Illinois, continued Friday, with the USEF Junior Rider Dressage National Championship taking centerstage. The junior riders first took the arena on Thursday to complete the FEI Junior Team Test before returning for the FEI Junior Individual Test on Friday morning, with each test worth 50% of the pairs’ overall scores. Ella Fruchterman rode Holts Le’mans to the top of the leaderboard in the individual test, earning a total of 70.246% to clinch the championship ribbon.
Coming off a successful trip to the North American Youth Championships in Traverse City, Michigan, several weeks ago where she won triple gold medals in the Junior division, Fruchterman was hoping to coast into the National Championships to keep her mount in top shape. Holts Le’mans, her own and Todd Fruchterman’s 11-year-old Danish gelding, exceeded her expectations once again, helping her perform her tests accurately when it counted.
Local to Minnesota, Fruchterman also trains with Angela Jackson in Henderson, Kentucky. Now a freshman at Indiana University, she is excited to study Biology and will consider a minor in Marketing while continuing her competitive riding career. Holts Le’mans is stabled with Jackson in Kentucky, where Fruchtermann will visit him on the weekends
Competition in the team test to kick off the division was tight, with the top three combinations earning scores within a fraction of a percentage point of each other. Madison Sumner and Briar, her own and Wayne Sumner’s 15-year-old KWPN gelding, took the lead initially on a score of 70.201%. Tiggy Gates and Shadow’s Dream, her own 16-year-old Hanoverian gelding, held the second place position with a 70.05%.
Improving upon her third place finish in Thursday’s team test where she earned a 70.049%, Fruchterman took home the blue in the individual test with a score of 70.44%, being awarded for her consistent and balanced test. Josephine Hinneman and Copa Cabana MRF, a 13-year-old Hanoverian gelding owned by Natalie Hamilton-Hinnemann, earned the red ribbon in the class with a 69.313%. Sumner and Briar earned a 68.725% and third place, which would award them total score of 69.464% to take home the reserve championship. Hinnemann and Copa Cabana MRF finished the division in third place with a score of 69.177%.
Competition at the U.S. Dressage Festival of Champions will continue Saturday, Aug. 27, with the FEI Grand Prix Freestyle for the USEF Grand Prix Dressage National Championship at 8:15 a.m.
FROM THE WINNERS CIRCLE
Ella Fruchterman – USEF Junior Rider Dressage National Champion
On winning the national championship:
“Right now I just feel like I’m on cloud nine. Especially coming off of North American [Youth Championships]. I really wasn’t expecting this and I’m just feeling overwhelmed by the support from my parents and my trainer Angela Jackson. My friends have also been so helpful and supportive this week coming off of the North American Youth Championships. I just really wanted to have fun today and yesterday, and I’ve had a lot of fun. Then I made the National Champion, so that was the cherry on top.”
On her test:
“Overall I think it was a fairly balanced test. I don’t think there were any highs or lows throughout. I was very focused on riding a clean test and I think some of the highlights include his trot work. I tried to keep a little more cadence and engagement today and his canter work I wanted to keep very uphill. Overall I think we were very successful in that.”
On her training after NAYC:
“Le’mans got most of last week off and then we just rode him a few times before bringing him here. We did some stretchy work and then right before coming we worked on keeping him up in the shoulders and making sure my half-halts were going through. Just keep it very basic.”
On Holts Le’mans:
“Le’mans is 11 years-old and we’ve been together for almost 2 years. I think our partnership has grown a lot this past season. The trust is definitely there between us now. I go into the ring and I know he’s right there with me and wants to work with me. Outside of the show ring, he’s super snuggly. He has a stuffed llama that he loves to cuddle with. His barn names are Lemanzi and Lemanzipoo. He has a very big personality. He just always wants to cuddle anybody and everybody and just always wants to know what’s going on.”
Madison Sumner – USEF Junior Rider Dressage National Reserve Champion
On her test:
“I was really happy with my test. I had a couple bobbles but overall I was really happy with the test. It was a little trickier for Briar so I was really happy with it.”
On her training after NAYC:
“I focused on keeping him going. I gave him a couple of days off and then I stretched and hacked him around and a couple of days before the show I did some real work and that really paid off.”
Josephine Hinnemann – USEF Junior Rider Dressage National Championship Third Place
On her test:
“I think throughout these last couple of shows, including NAYC, it was just consistently getting better and I think today was our best test since the start. I was really happy with it.”
On training after NAYC:
“I also let him have a week off and then I kind of went through everything that needed to be fixed since the last show and that really helped.”
RESULTS:
USEF Junior Rider Dressage National Championship
Place / Rider / Horse / Owner / Score
1. Ella Fruchterman / Holts Le’mans / Todd Fruchterman and Ella Fruchterman / 70.246
2. Madison Sumner / Briar / Madison Sumner & Wayne Sumner / 69.464
3. Josephine Hinnemann / Copa Cabana MRF / Natalie Hamilton-Hinnemann / 69.177
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