Shirley Geraets-Moors: “The World Championship for Young Horses will be a great adventure”

The FEI Driving World Championship for Young Horses will take place from 17 to 20 September. Shirley and Ogano will compete in the seven-year-old category, the largest age group at the championship with sixteen nominated horses. A total of 39 horses from eleven countries appear on the nominated entry list.

Yet just one year ago, competing at a World Championship was not part of the plan at all. Ogano came into Shirley’s life after her previous competition horse Harvey was injured.

A successor

For Shirley, the road to Kisbér actually began with a major setback. She had spent several years progressing towards the highest level with Harvey. Two years ago, even competing at the World Championship in Haras du Pin seemed within reach, but things went wrong during a qualification event.

“Harvey was injured. At the time, I was part of the B squad and, if everything had continued as planned, I had a chance of going to the World Championship. We had trained as usual, but after the veterinary examination, he suddenly wasn’t right.”

Harvey returned after a period of treatment. Last year, Shirley took him to Kronenberg, but afterwards it became clear that he was once again not completely sound. For Shirley, that was the moment to start looking ahead.

“You can’t keep waiting indefinitely to see whether your horse might recover. That isn’t fair to yourself or to your horse. So we decided to start looking for a successor, so that I could remain active in competition.”

Ogano

Through her coach and close friend Stan van Eijk, the then six-year-old Ogano (Henkie x Delviro HBC) came into the picture. The chestnut stallion was bred by Raeven Sporthorses, owned by Etienne and Yvonne Raeven. He is by Henkie out of the star mare Iranda (by Delviro HBC). Breeder Etienne Raeven trained Ogano himself and competed with him in driving in 2024.

Initially, there had been no intention of selling Ogano. Eventually, however, Geraets-Moors was given the opportunity to come and see him. Ogano already had competition experience and had been in training for some time.

“As soon as we went to see him, I was sold. We bought him and I started working with him last year.”

The idea takes shape

The idea of making the Young Horse World Championship a goal only developed later. After Shirley was given a wildcard to attend a squad training session with her new horse, the possibility was raised for the first time that Ogano might be a candidate for the FEI Driving World Championship for Young Horses.

That did not mean the decision to travel to Hungary was made immediately. Shirley and her family recently bought a farm and are still in the middle of renovating it. A trip to Hungary also requires considerable organisation. Still, the idea continued to appeal to her.

“At some point I thought: I really want to find out more about this World Championship for young horses. After all, it is a World Championship. You don’t get many opportunities to compete at one. How often do you have a horse that is exactly the right age and suitable for it as well?”

After discussing it with her family, the decision was finally made. “We sat down together and said: we’re just going to do it. We see it as a great opportunity for both of us to gain experience.”

Supple and smart

Ogano’s character and attitude give Shirley confidence ahead of the championship. “He is incredibly trainable and learns very quickly. If he doesn’t understand something and you explain it to him a few times, he gets it. And then he genuinely enjoys doing the work.”

The seven-year-old has also developed considerably in the marathon over the past year. According to Shirley, Ogano initially preferred to take his time and assess the situation. She deliberately chose not to ask too much of him.

“For four or five competitions, I really gave him time. I let him get used to everything, let him look around and asked him to go just a little faster each time. At the district championship in Panningen, I suddenly had the feeling: now he understands it. He enjoys it.”

Despite standing approximately 1.75 metres at the withers, Ogano is remarkably agile. “He is incredibly supple. He also handles the smaller obstacles very well and hardly makes any mistakes in dressage. If I ask him something, he simply does it. He is very uncomplicated, but he certainly isn’t lazy.”

An adventure

The championship will also be a new experience for Shirley herself. In the past, she regularly travelled to international competitions with Stan van Eijk. This time, however, she is the one taking her own horse to a major championship and having to organise everything surrounding the journey.

The route itself is not entirely unfamiliar. They will stop overnight on the way before continuing to Kisbér, and Shirley already knows the overnight stop from previous competitions with Stan. Still, this time it feels different.

“Normally, I just get in the car and go along for the ride. Now you have to organise everything yourself.”

She will not be travelling alone: the whole family is coming to Hungary. Shirley finds it difficult to predict what she can expect from a sporting perspective at her first Young Horse World Championship. The competition consists of other young horses, and many of the combinations are unfamiliar to her.

“Whether you’re going to achieve something there is always the question. How will you feel on the day? Can you keep a cool head when you drive into that World Championship arena? And of course, you don’t know what the competition will do. It really is one big adventure. The goal is simply to have a fantastic week.”

Source: Hoefnet. Reproduction without permission via info@hoefnet.nl is not permitted.
Photo: Kelly Zuidema