Olympic veterans Debbie McDonald and Brentina are back and better than ever. They showed that off in spades during the highlight of the Del Mar Nationals Dressage Week, the Saturday, May 3 Grand Prix Freestyle. Their score of 76 percent reflected the brilliance of their ride. The 17-year-old Hanoverian mare had been sidelined by an injury for most of last year and only went back to work in January.
Debbie and Brentina won the Grand Prix, too. Steffen Peters and Lombardi II and Leslie Morse and Kingston took the second and third spots, respectively, in both the GP Freestyle and the Grand Prix. That made Del Mar a great preview of the West Coast’s high hopes for the Olympic Selection Trials to be held later this month in San Juan Capistrano. Leslie and Steffen took fourth and fifth Grand Prix finishes with Tip Top 962 and Prince, while additional local Olympic contenders Jan Ebeling and Kristina Harrison-Naness had strong finishes, too.
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