Para-Equestrian Dressage Team nominated by British Equestrian Federation for Beijing Paralympic Games 2008
By Your Horse
General news
16 June 2008 15:02
The British Equestrian Federation today nominated the seven Para-Equestrian Dressage riders for the ParalympicsGB team for the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games. They are:
Grade Ia:
Sophie Christiansen riding the Para Dressage Training Trust's Lambrusco III
Anne Dunham riding Sally Ann Brown's Teddy
Grade Ib:
Ricky Balshaw riding his own and Mrs Julia Lazzari's Deacon's Giorgi
Lee Pearson riding his own, Mr & Mrs David Pearson and Gillian Chinn's Gentleman
Grade II:
Felicity Coulthard riding her own, Roffelaar
Grade III:
Deborah Criddle riding her own and Bruce Criddle's Pavaroti
Simon Laurens riding John Gamlin's Ocean Diamond
The squad features a mix of youth and experience, with Lee Pearson set to make his third ParalympicsGB team appearance and Anne Dunham her fourth. Six-time Paralympic gold medallist Lee has never been beaten at a Paralympic Games and Anne Dunham, at 59, is likely to be one of Britain’s oldest athletes for Beijing. For Deborah Criddle it would also be her third Games and she will be hoping to build on her triple Gold at Athens in 2004.
20-year-old 2004 Paralympic Games bronze medallist Sophie Christiansen is nominated to return to the ParalympicsGB team for her second Games along with, 21-year-old Ricky Balshaw, 40-year-old Simon Laurens and 24-year-old Felicity Coulthard who are all making their Games debuts this summer.
Newcomer Simon Laurens comments, “I’m absolutely ecstatic and can’t quite believe it! Since my first Prelim competition two years ago to the World Championships last summer it’s been an absolute whirlwind but this is the ultimate. I always hoped that Ocean Diamond would be destined for Hong Kong, he’s such a great little horse and really deserves to go.”
Experienced Paralympian Lee Pearson comments, “You can never take selection as a given and I am stunned and delighted to be nominated to go to my 3rd Paralympics. I’m really looking forward to it - Gentleman is a young horse but he has been brilliant over the selection trials. The hard work really starts now though and I want to wrap him up in cotton wool.”