Source:  News Release

Dressage Canada Announces 2013 Achievement Award and
Dilanni Freestyle Award Recipients

Ottawa, ON --- Dressage Canada is pleased to announce the 2013 Dressage Canada Achievement Award (Horse, Rider, and Freestyle) recipients.

2013 Lauren Dilanni Freestyle Award

Dressage Canada is honoured to provide the Lauren Dilanni Freestyle Rider Award to riders who demonstrate freestyle excellence in competition by achieving at least three scores of 67% or more in freestyle classes at the Second level or higher.

Recipients receive a cash award generously donated by the Board of the Lauren Dilanni Memorial Fund in memory of Dilanni, a passionate advocate of dressage who passed away suddenly at the age of 40. Three of Dilanni's friends established the fund in her honour with the goal of developing interest in freestyle competition and therefore attracting competitors, owners, and sponsors to the sport of dressage.

The fund is administered through the Community Foundation of Ottawa under the direction of board members Irene Greenberg, Joanna Crilly, and Joan Johnston.
2013 recipients of the Lauren Dilanni Freestyle Award:

"I am very excited to have received this great award. This is my first year doing a freestyle with Lumiere so I'm thrilled with our results. I love riding this freestyle and it's a lot of fun. I am so happy with the music and how well it suits Lumiere and myself. I owe a lot to Nicholas Fyffe for putting the music together. Thank you to the  Board of the Lauren DiIanni Memorial Fund and Dressage Canada for offering this great award!," said Markowski, who had a successful 2013 season with her 11-year-old Canadian Warmblood gelding, Lumiere. Some of her freestyle highlights from the year include a win in the Intermediate Freestyle at the CDI1* Saugerties last August, as well as a third place finish in the FEI Intermediaire I Open Freestyle at the CDI-W Devon later in the fall.

Wise also had a solid season. In addition to her success at the Second level, she placed second in the FEI Junior Freestyle at the CDI2*/Y/J Calgary in June, before moving on to represent Canada at the 2013 Adequan FEI North American Junior and Young Rider Championships (NAJYRC) in July, where she finished 22nd individually. "My coach Janet Adams and I worked very hard this past year to qualify for NAJYRC and I am very pleased to receive this award. The freestyle is great fun to work on and present because the audience really enjoys them. The horses seem to as well! It was a pleasure to work with Karen Robinson and she created a beautiful freestyle with music that suited my horse perfectly," said Wise.

2013 Achievement Awards

Each year, Dressage Canada offers an awards program for both riders and horses.
DC members competing at Equine Canada sanctioned silver, gold and platinum or international equivalent events are invited to register for the awards program by submitting a one-time fee for lifetime registration. Once registered, riders and owners are eligible to earn awards by meeting score requirements at EC Silver or Gold-level competitions within Canada, or international competitions.

The following levels are available:

Gold

• Open to riders and horses competing at the Prix St Georges, Intermediaire I, Intermediaire II, and Grand Prix levels.
• Requires a minimum of four scores of 60% or more from two judges

Silver

• Open to riders and horses competing at the Second, Third, and Fourth levels.
• At the Second and Third levels, a minimum of four scores of 60% or more from two judges is required.
• At the Fourth level, a minimum of four scores of 60% or more from three judges is required.

Bronze

• Open to riders and horses competing at the Training and First levels.
• Requires a minimum of four scores of 63% or more from three judges.

A full list of the 2013 Dressage Canada Horse Award recipients can be viewed here.
A full list of the 2013 Dressage Canada Rider Award recipients can be viewed here.   

More information on the Dressage Canada Awards Program can be found on the Dressage Canada website.

Dr. Geoff Vernon Appointed Dressage Team Veterinarian
for 2014 World Equestrian Games

Dressage Canada is pleased to announce that Dr. Geoff Vernon has been appointed the official Dressage Team Veterinarian for the 2014 FEI World Equestrian Games, set to take place in Normandy, FRA next summer.

"We are thrilled to have a seasoned professional like Dr. Vernon join the team," said Victoria Winter, who was recently appointed the Chef d'Equipe for Canada's 2014 WEG Dressage Team. "Not only does he bring years of international experience, but having filled this role for Canada at the 2012 Olympic Games and 2010 WEG, he already has a good familiarity with our riders. I look forward to working with him as we prepare for WEG."

A world-renowned equine veterinarian, Dr. Vernon has held FEI Veterinarian status since 2009. In that time, he has filled the role of team vet for both Canada and the U.S. at Olympic Games, Pan American Games, and World Equestrian Games, as well as a wide range of prestigious international competitions.

"I look forward to the opportunity of building on the past successes of Canada's dressage team and in helping to fulfil its promise for the future," said Dr. Vernon.

In addition to being Canada's WEG Dressage Team Veterinarian, Dr. Vernon will be offering his expertise to high performance riders as a keynote speaker at Dressage Canada's "Florida Fortnight" , which is being hosted during CDI-level competition at the 2014 Adequan Global Dressage Festival in Wellington, FL from Jan. 19 to Feb. 2, 2014. Created to provide dressage athletes, sponsors, owners, officials, and enthusiasts with the chance to join in educational, networking, and entertainment-related activities, the Florida Fortnight will feature everything from public panel discussions and fundraisers to private planning sessions for Canada's potential WEG team members. 

For more information on the Florida Fortnight, visit www.equinecanada.ca/dressage.

Keep your eye on Dressage Canada's Facebook and Twitter accounts for future news and updates on Canada's Dressage Team for WEG 2014.

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