Belgian crowd treated to magical freestyle finale at CDIO Lier

Five days of top-level dressage at CDIO Lier came to an impressive conclusion on Sunday afternoon, with the 4* Grand Prix Freestyle to Music providing a beautiful final highlight of the event. The Belgian crowd at Azelhof was treated to outstanding sport throughout the afternoon, not only thanks to the magical performance of home favourite Justin Verboomen and Zonik Plus, but also through strong performances from the rest of the international field.

The undisputed star of the afternoon was once again Belgium’s own Justin Verboomen with the sensational Zonik Plus. Competing in front of an enthusiastic home crowd, the pair broke the magical 90% barrier with a winning score of 90.015%, further confirming their status as one of the most exciting combinations in international dressage today. “The trot work felt really easy today, and the pirouettes were better than yesterday”, Verboomen said afterwards. “I really tried to give him confidence and comfort in the ring, and I did my best to help him”, Justin explains. “I was for sure very happy with our test and I’m incredibly proud of him, he is still so young. After the small mistakes yesterday, I didn’t feel completely confident, but once again Zonik Plus made me so proud.”

Two 16-years-old
Belgian rider Larissa Pauluis also gave the home crowd plenty to cheer for. Together with her experienced 16-year-old partner Flambeau, she rode to second place with a strong score of 81.750%. Third place in the freestyle went to Germany’s Semmieke Rothenberger and 16-years-old Farrington, scoring 79.745%, who continued an impressive week in Lier. Just one day earlier, the 26-year-old rider made her senior Nations Cup debut for Germany.

“You saved us!”
“It is always an honour to represent your country”, Rothenberger said afterwards. “This was my senior debut, although I’ve competed at many championships before, so I know what pressure feels like. But I didn’t realise my score would still be important for the bronze medal in the Nations Cup. When I came out of the arena, my teammates told me: ‘Semmie, you saved us!’”, she laughed. Rothenberger was also full of praise for the organisation in Lier. “It truly feels like a show organised by and for horse people. Everything is top class: the stables, the footing, the entire atmosphere. Ferri loves coming here and always performs so well in Lier.”

From Lier to Dutch Championships
Dutch rider Marieke van der Putten also impressed the crowd with a strong freestyle performance aboard Kuvasz RS2. Despite a costly mistake in the one-tempis, the Dutch combination showed clear progression and maturity, leaving Van der Putten genuinely delighted with her horse afterwards. “I’m really, really happy”, Van der Putten smiled afterwards. “Of course I’m a little disappointed about the mistake in the one-tempis because that was a very expensive one. But overall, I’m super happy. He keeps improving so much. The piaffe and passage are getting better and better. He really fought for me today. This is the first competition where I can ride him in the arena the same way he feels at home. He is becoming mature and this was very good preparation for the Dutch Championships next week.”

Grand Prix Special
Earlier on the final day of CDIO Lier, the audience was also treated to high-quality sport during the 4* Grand Prix Special. Belgian rider Wim Verwimp claimed victory aboard Jedai de Massa, much to the delight of the home crowd. Portugal’s Maria Caetano followed in second place with Hit Plus, while Great Britain’s Susan Pape completed the podium in third with Harmony’s Giulilanta. Once again, CDIO Lier proved itself as one of Europe’s leading dressage events, bringing together world-class combinations, passionate supporters and outstanding sport in a unique atmosphere at Azelhof with over 250 riders and 300 horses. The organisation now looks forward to welcoming riders, owners and spectators back to Lier next Wednesday for the start of the Belgian Dressage Championships.

Results