Cathrine and Freestyle Ready for Five Star Dressage
It will be incredibly exciting to follow the equipages at ECCO Five Star Dressage – and now Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour has revealed that she will be competing with MSJ Freestyle!
It will be a wonderful reunion with Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour and MSJ Freestyle at ECCO Five Star Dressage in Herning. Photo: Ridehesten.com
“We are incredibly excited to come to Herning once again,” says Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour today, as she announces big news: She is bringing her Olympic and European Championship partner Mount St. John Freestyle to the Danish Warmblood Stallion Licensing in Herning from March 4–8.
Cathrine and Freestyle will compete in the event’s most prestigious dressage class: ECCO Five Star Dressage. The competition, held at five-star level, is together with the World Cup Freestyle in Herning in October, the highest-ranked dressage classes that can be ridden on Danish soil.
In Herning, riders will compete in ECCO Five Star Dressage twice. On Friday afternoon, just before the Gala Show, the Nordentoft Grand Prix takes place, and on Saturday afternoon, also just before the Gala Show, the ECCO Grand Prix Freestyle (Kür). Overall, there is plenty to experience for dressage enthusiasts on Friday and Saturday. See the full program here: Program
There is a tradition of the audience creating an amazing atmosphere inside the Jyske Bank Boxen when the dressage riders enter the arena. Photo: Ridehesten.com
ECCO Five Star Dressage was held for the first time in 2020 – the winner was Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour and Bohemian, and they repeated that victory in 2022 after there was no Stallion Licensing event in Herning in 2021 due to the COVID pandemic. Nanna Skodborg Merrald and the breeding stallion Blue Hors St. Schufro claimed the victory in 2023, and then Cathrine made a strong comeback with two spectacular performances on MSJ Freestyle in 2024, where they won. Last year Cathrine did not compete, and her national team colleagues were unable to surpass the German Olympic rider Dorothee Schneider and Dayman. This year, Cathrine and Freestyle are fortunately back in Herning, and Cathrine is ready to take on what looks to be the strongest field to date at ECCO Five Star Dressage.
Cathrine says about Free: “She had a short break in December and early January, and now training has started again. So the next big event will be the Herning Stallion Licensing, and we are insanely excited. I hope to see as many of you as possible. And that together we can create some fantastic experiences!”
We are insanely excited too, Cathrine!
Buy tickets for the Danish Warmblood Stallion Licensing and much more here: Danish Warmblood – Online Ticket Sales