VICTORIAN riders have a golden opportunity to watch two master craftsmen at work at this week's Dressage and Jumping with the Stars.
International showjumping rider Edward Doyle - who The Weekly Times featured last month - will head the judging panel for the Young Jumping Horse classes and conduct the jumping masterclass on Saturday, March 20.
German-based international trainer Ton de Ridder will present a masterclass on Thursday evening, March 18.
He will also be part of the judging panel for the final of the Australian Young Horse Dressage Championships.
German-based de Ridder has built his career as an international dressage trainer over several decades.
His wife, Alexandra, was a member of the gold medal-winning German team at the Sydney Olympics.
He is in high demand as a presenter, and late last year presented a masterclass at the Global Dressage Forum competition.
Dressage and Jumping with the Stars has come a long way since champion European rider and trainer Anky Van Grunsven was brought to Australia in 1998 to present a dressage master class.
Organisers felt the occasion needed some enhancement and it was decided to combine it with a young dressage horse competition.
That competition is now the Australian Young Dressage Horse Championships, which is run under official Equestrian Australia rules with qualifying events all over Australia.
Since its inception, the event has grown to become the most prestigious young horse event in Australia.
In 2002 Dressage with the Stars introduced the Young Jumping Horse Championships and the event became known as Dressage and Jumping with the Stars, which this year will run from March 18-21 at the National Equestrian Centre at Werribee Park.
