Beautiful winners and enthusiastic team captains at Allspan pony jumping
The last day of Indoor Friesland 2024 has arrived. One more day to fully enjoy everything our great sport has to offer. The day started with the final of the Indoor Friesland Allspan Pony Jumping – a section with a jump-off and double the excitement. Both an individual and a team ranking were drawn up, with teams under professional supervision.
None other than Jeroen Dubbeldam, Jur Vrieling, Vincent Voorn, Maikel van der Vleuten and Willem Greve walked the course with the top horses of the future and prepared them for their start. The “Allspan Horse Heroes Team Jeroen” came out on top, and individually Lieke van der Linde was the lucky winner. Lieke rode her six-year-old mare E-pony Nena O'Hessein to victory in a time of 30,16 seconds.
Team winners
Jeroen Dubbeldam's team consisted of Lys van Delden with Mister Doeby Leco, Liv Hoorn with Mr. Macho, Tineke Siegrid Bouma with Henswoudes Krato, Minke van Houten with Kappuccino and Liandrie Peek with Cheela. Jeroen Dubbeldam: "I had a team with strong riders, and my role was actually mainly motivation, support and encouragement instead of technical help. I also told them that winning is fun, but that enjoying it is at least as important."
Podium places in the individual battle
In the individual ranking, second place went to Nicole de Booij and her sixteen-year-old D-pony Ringersheim's Adine, with a time of 30,70 seconds. Third place went to Nova Boekholt and her C-pony Crownhill Joe, who crossed the finish line in 31,41 seconds. Crownhill Joe is a seventeen-year-old gelding.
From Oliva to Leeuwarden
Vincent Voorn flew back from Oliva 'for a moment' to optimally prepare his team. "We currently have 40 horses at the competition in Oliva, but I had agreed to come here. The youth are the future, and I really like to make time for them. It was a super fun section and definitely worth the trip," says Vincent.
Jessica Springsteen as a great example
Individual winner Lieke van der Linde is fifteen years old and comes from Wanneperveen. She is in the fourth year of the VMBO and Nena is her own pony. She has had Nena for almost two years and would like to continue in equestrian sports, but doubts whether that is wise. Lieke: “I did not expect this victory at all, especially not because there were also two Dutch champions competing. I had planned to just enjoy myself, but when I rode without faults, I really went for it in the jump-off. My pony and I both found it exciting. I had never been to Indoor Friesland before and did not know that it would be so great here. I am taught by Lydia from Stal Angelique Hoorn, and my great example is Jessica Springsteen.
I was in Team Willem Greve and he gave me a good tip. My pony is quite strong, and he advised me to make sure she doesn't fall through my inside leg; then she'll be easier to ride. My pony can be tough sometimes, but if you know and respect her instructions, she'll do anything for you. For me, she now has a heart of gold. Now I'm focusing on the regional championships - I'd like to ride the Winter Championship."
Experience for the future
The last word goes to the sponsor, Danielle van Allspan: “We sponsored this competition because we wanted to give the pony riders a bit more of a stage. We come from the area, Haulerwijk, and all the qualifications took place in the northern provinces. Of course, this is also a great way to increase our name recognition. As far as I’m concerned, our mission was a success on all fronts. It was touching to see how much fun the children had, as well as the fans they brought along. The best thing about this story is that it was much more than just sponsorship with a prize. We gave the children an experience for the future, from the preliminary round to the press conference – it felt real.”
Photos: Digishots
Text: Marjan de Wildt – Media Team Indoor Friesland
