DressageDaily: Coby van Baalen and Olympic Ferro

Wednesday, August 25 1999

Coby van Baalen and Olympic Ferro

van baalen and Olympic Ferro

Dutch Dressage Team Member Coby van Baalen made her international debut at the 1998 World Equestrian Games in Rome. With the KWPN approved stallion Olympic Ferro (by Ulft x Farn) she received the silver team medal and conquered the individual sixth place. 1998 was a turbulent year for Coby as successes in the Grand Prix at various national shows gave her a place in the Dutch team. At Indoor Brabant her mount Olympic Ferro was proclaimed Dutch Horse of the Year, and hitherto she won the Grand Prix and Special at that event.

Trained by the former German Chef d'Equipe Johan Hinnemann and running her own dressage stable in Brakel, Holland, Coby van Baalen thinks that Ferro's strong sides are his expressiveness and powerful hindquarters. "Like most stallions Ferro can became a little strong and I always have to train on "durchlassigkeit"," as Coby points out the weaker points of Ferro. "I consider Anky's Bonfire, Thornblad-Jensen's Marzog and Kyrklund's Matador the best dressage horses ever. I hope one day Ferro will be added to that list."

by Astrid Appels