North American junior and young riders not used to the standards of a European judge might think Jacques Van Daele is a bit tough. He is.

“I’ve judged ponies and young riders back home in Europe so I know what the level is like at home. And here at this competition, I’m judging like I do at home. We have to judge with the same standard, otherwise that’s cheating,” Van Daele said.

While some young American and Canadian riders might be a bit surprised at the standard of judging they’ve faced at the North American Junior and Young Riders’ Championships, Van Daele is no less surprised by what he’s finding in his first trip to the NAJRC.

First off, he’s amazed at the quality of horses at the competition, so amazed, in fact, that he can’t stop commenting about it. “Maybe I’m repeating myself, but I must say, the quality of horses here is very good. I’ve seen some that I’d like to take home.”

Van Daele said he’s been asked to judge young horse classes at Dressage at Devon this year and based on what he’s seen at the NAJRC, he’s even more excited about the chance to see what North America has in the way of young horses. His warning to Europeans, who have long been leaders in international dressage competition, is that they’d better beware.

“The gap is getting closer and smaller. I’ve heard from my colleagues that in earlier years the gap between North America and Europe was bigger. Now it’s smaller,” Van Daele said. And much of what is closing that gap are the horses.