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With Permission Anky® Anky Ranked #1 on BCM Standings Olympic Medals 1992 - Barcelona World Championships: 1998:
WEG - Rome
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Netherlands
The Games Begin 9/15 The Olympic fire burns, the flag waves. It has really started now! Anky: “The Opening Ceremony was very beautiful and impressive. In total we were walking with 10.300 athletes, from almost every country in the world. It is really unique to have so many cultures come together in one stadium. Firstly we walked one kilometer before reaching the main stadium. We were greeted enthusiastically by many people on our way. We notice the attention attracted to the Dutch delegation from the enthusiastic people. It was a big honor to carry the flag, but is was also a little bit scary. Before, I talked to some experienced Dutch flag carriers Peter Blanché and Nico Rienks. Nico advised me how to carry the flag. I didn’t follow Peter’s advice. He then took the flag home as a souvenir. By the way I had to give the flag back immediately after my walk around the stadium. Probably now the Dutch have a bad reputation. The lighting of the fire by Cathy Freeman was extra exiting because it was not rehearsed prior to its happening. The rest of the Opening was rehearsed twice before. But luckily everything went well and it was a splendid moment. When it was finished we walked with Princess Haya from Jordania. She is already an acquaintance of ours through training some horses at George Sanna’s, the place where we are staying. Princess Haya rides in the Games via a wildcard entry as an individual jumping rider for Jordania.” The Games start tomorrow for the Equestrian division with team dressage for the Eventing riders. All the horses passed the vet check. Olympic Fire Lit! 9/15 Friday night in the main stadium in Sydney the Olympic fire was lit by Cathy Freeman. Cathy, Olympic Athletics Champion from aboriginal origin, lit the fire while she was standing in water. This was a very artistic event. The Dutch Olympic athletes had to gather in the Olympic Village at half past four. After a photo was taken of the entire delegation in official orange clothes, all the athletes were transported to the main stadium. While the impressive Opening Ceremony was held in the main stadium, the almost 11.000 (!) athletes were waiting in another Olympic stadium, directly next door. The organization made sure that the athletes could view the spectacle on special large monitors. After this fantastic show, all the countries presented themselves. The Dutch Olympic delegation, led by our own flag bearing Anky, was greeted with an ecstatic crowd. Unfortunately from the TV you could see the flag better than Anky herself and it was hard to catch a glimpse of her. If you were viewing from TV, you would have noticed the lamps in the audience. These were from a package full of attributes given to all spectators. The white lamps were little torches; the red lights were bracelets that flickered when moved. Pampered Feet 9/15 Not only the horses, but also the riders are being taken good care of during the Olympic games. To spoil the riders’ feet before the long stand during the Opening Ceremony, there was the idea to treat them to a pedicure. Coby and Ellen thought this was a fantastic idea and desperately wanted to make use of it. After all it is not a nice thought to wander around in the Opening Ceremony with a corn in your toe. The evening before the opening ceremony Coby and Ellen went ‘under the knife’. Because the pedicure had to spend a lot of time on Coby’s feet, Ellen lost interest and fell asleep. When it was Ellen’s turn, the pedicure placed beside her a meat cleaver, bread knife, cheese grater and a steel brush. After Ellen was awakened, and took a glance at the tools of the Australian pedicure, she almost had a heart attack and wanted to make a quick escape. Ellen never saw Coby coming back again… So she thought maybe the Australians were not that advanced with their techniques. After all it was a practical joke and her feet were pampered with modern tools, so Ellen could frolic in the Olympic stadium. Dressage un Ltd. | Join / Renew Dressage un Ltd. Copyright © Dressage un Ltd. All rights reserved.
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