DressageDaily: Aachen a Thrill for Carrie Schopf and Ikhtisas

Sunday, July 23 2000

Aachen a Thrill for Carrie Schopf and Ikhtisas

After a brief visit to Florida this past winter to participate in two of the USET Dressage Olympic Selection Trials, Carrie Schopf, and her Holsteiner/Thoroughbred cross mare Ikhtisas, finished in sixth position overall.

Married to German dressage rider Bernd Schopf, and living in Bremen Germany, she earned the invitation to return to America for the final selection trial in May to determine the top five horses to compete in Europe for the Olympic team. Regretfully Schopf declined after the trials were moved to Florida. Dealing with quarantine issues for a mare, and other factors, it was decided that in the "best interest of the well being of my horse I just could not do it."

With the top four American riders decided two weeks before at Bad Honnef, Schopf joined Lisa Wilcox at CHIO Aachen to represent the United States in competition there. "I am thrilled with my mare's performance here. " Schopf told us after her Grand Prix where she placed 17th with A 66.92 in a class of 37 entries where scores were in the 70 percentile up to 12th place. "This is only her second major international show, and she was wonderful."

For Schopf's first time at Aachen ever, not even as a spectator, the quality of the competition and how the organizers did everything with the best interest of the competitors and horses alike overwhelmed her.

With a large contingent of Americans in the stands (mostly by A where the riders' exited the arena) Schopf and "Ikhty" were greeted with a resounding applause as they completed their ride.

Related Links
Horsesdaily's "On The Scene" Coverage of Aachen
Aachen Dressage Results
Carrie Schopf Headed Back to Germany
Carrie Schopf and Ikhtisas