More sad news arrived this morning from the dressage powerhouse nation of The Netherlands, where the top horse in the country has been hospitalized.
The national federation (KNHS) announced that Olympic Silver Medalist and 2011 World Cup champions Adelinde Cornelissen and Parzival would not be named to the Dutch Nations Cup team for the upcoming CHIO?Rotterdam later this month. Parzival has been hospitalized in Belgium, where the 16-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding is being treated for cardiac arrhythmia?at the University of Ghent veterinary hospital.
The announcement of Parzival’s condition coincided with Dutch chef d’equipe Wim Ernes listing the Dutch team for Rotterdam, also in The Netherlands, later this month. Cornelissen and Parzival are the defending double gold medalists in the European Championships.
On the subject of Cornelissen missing the Nations Cup, Ernes said, “Parzival had conditional complaints, he could not sustain the work and was not as active as usual. Team Veterinarian Jan Greve has examined him last Saturday. Jerich Parzival was found to have (cardiac) arrhythmias. He was referred to the University Hospital in Ghent to Professor Gunther van Loon.
“Parzival was successfully treated on Monday, Van Loon let us know. (The horse) will have a few days’ stay in Ghent and the recovery will take several weeks.”
(Note: Ernes’ statement was in Dutch; words in quotes are via translation.)
Just yesterday, The Jurga Report published news that Cornelissen’s upcoming grand prix horse, Galahad, had died after severe colic over the weekend.
Ernes’ list for the Dutch Nations Cup team at Rotterdam will be Edward Gal with Glock’s Undercover, Hans Peter Minderhoud with Glock’s Romanov, Patrick van der Meer with Uzzo and Madeleine Witte-Vrees with Blom’s Wynton.
–by Fran Jurga
