Andreas Helgstrand (born 2 October 1977
) is a
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
dressage
Dressage ( or ; a French term, most commonly translated to mean "training") is a form of horse riding performed in exhibition and competition, as well as an art sometimes pursued solely for the sake of mastery. As an equestrian sport defined b ...
rider. He won four consecutive Danish dressage championships, from 2005 through 2008.
Biography
Andreas Helgstrand was born in 1977 to Ulf Helgstrand and his wife. His father became president of the Danish Equestrian Federation.
Andreas started competitive riding aged 7 or 8, competing initially in
showjumping
Show jumping is a part of a group of English riding equestrian events that also includes dressage, eventing, hunters, and equitation. Jumping classes are commonly seen at horse shows throughout the world, including the Olympics. Sometimes shows ...
.
At the age of 17, he started training as a riding master in 1994 at the Sport Riding Club in
Aalborg
Aalborg (, , ) is Denmark's fourth largest town (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an urban population of 143,598 (1 July 2022). As of 1 July 2022, the Municipality of Aalb ...
. He passed the final exams in 2000.
He has since worked as a horse trainer, riding instructor, and horse trader; first in the Netherlands with
Anne van Olst
Anne van Olst (born 25 March 1962 in Aalborg, Nordjylland), also known as Anne Koch Jensen, is a Danish dressage rider. She was part of the Bronze winning Danish team at the Olympic games in Beijing 2008 and finished 23rd in the individual dre ...
, then in
Kongsberg
Kongsberg () is a historical mining town and municipality in Buskerud, Viken county, Norway. The city is located on the river Numedalslågen at the entrance to the valley of Numedal. Kongsberg has been a centre of silver mining, arms production ...
in Norway, before replacing
Lars Petersen at the Blue Hors stud in Randboel, Denmark.
At the
2004 Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
, riding Cavan, Helgstrand came in ninth in the
individual
An individual is that which exists as a distinct entity. Individuality (or self-hood) is the state or quality of being an individual; particularly (in the case of humans) of being a person unique from other people and possessing one's own Maslow ...
and fifth in the
team
A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal.
As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson (academic), Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interde ...
.
He finished fourth in the 2004 poll for Danish sportsperson of the year.
At the
2006 World Equestrian Games, riding the mare Matiné, Helgstrand came in second in the
Individual freestyle and third in the
individual special. Eurodressage's report of the tournament called him "the favourite of the crowd" and said he "seemed to have redefined
piaffe
The piaffe () is a dressage movement where the horse is in a highly collected and cadenced trot, in place or nearly in place. The center of gravity of the horse should be more towards the hind end, with the hindquarters slightly lowered and grea ...
and
passage
Passage, The Passage or Le Passage may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Films
* ''Passage'' (2008 film), a documentary about Arctic explorers
* ''Passage'' (2009 film), a short movie about three sisters
* ''The Passage'' (1979 film), starring ...
". A video of this performance (to the hip-hop song "No Mo" by Red Astaire) has circulated widely on YouTube, being seen over 5 million times.
Helgstrand withdrew from the 2007
Dressage World Cup
The FEI World Cup Dressage Final is an annual international dressage series involving the world's best dressage horses and riders. It has been held since 1985. The World Cup is run in the form of a CDI.
History
The history of the World Cup ...
finals in
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
when Matiné twisted her left front pastern on arrival while getting out of the van. She was retired from competition in the months afterward, as she was unable to recover from the injury. In 2010 she was
euthanised
Animal euthanasia (euthanasia from el, εὐθανασία; "good death") is the act of killing an animal or allowing it to die by withholding extreme medical measures. Reasons for euthanasia include incurable (and especially painful) conditio ...
after breaking a leg in the pasture.
In 2008, Helgstrand won his fourth consecutive Danish dressage championship, on his fourth horse (Don Schufro, after Cavan, Matiné and Casmir). At the
2008 Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nati ...
, riding Don Schufro, he came in eleventh in the
individual
An individual is that which exists as a distinct entity. Individuality (or self-hood) is the state or quality of being an individual; particularly (in the case of humans) of being a person unique from other people and possessing one's own Maslow ...
and third in the
team
A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal.
As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson (academic), Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interde ...
.
At the end of 2008 Helgstrand left the Blue Hors stud to start his own business, which he named Helgstrand Dressage, at Møgelmosegård near
Aalborg
Aalborg (, , ) is Denmark's fourth largest town (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an urban population of 143,598 (1 July 2022). As of 1 July 2022, the Municipality of Aalb ...
.
In 2010 Helgstrand rode Uno Donna Unique to victory in the 6-year-old class at the 2010 World Championships for Young Dressage Horses. In 2013 Helgstrand became embroiled in a dispute regarding the sale of Uno Donna Unique. In the same year, he came under extensive media fire regarding controversial photographs taken of him riding his horse in the disputed
rollkur
Rollkur or hyperflexion of the horse's neck is defined as "flexion of the horse's neck achieved through aggressive force" and is banned in International and Olympic sanctioned equestrian sports by the governing body, the International Federation f ...
technique.
Helgstrand was shortlisted for the Danish dressage team for
the 2012 Olympics, but was not selected.
In April 2014 Helgstrand was under scrutiny for animal cruelty due to alleged harsh, illegal and cruel training methods. The Danish animal protection service summoned him for a meeting. Several of the big Danish newspapers were running stories with photographs from a recent event where his horse Foldagers Akeem was bleeding and had a blue tongue. On 28 November 2014 the court in Aalborg announced an acquittal verdict in the case against Helgstrand, acquitting him of all charges. ”I am very happy about the ruling of the court; it is important for me personally, but also for the sport in general. It has been quite tough to have these accusations hovering, but my family and I are now focusing on the future instead," said Helgstrand.
In September 2023 Helgstrand once again came under fire for alleged animal abuse. This time it was an undercover documentary, that allegedly exposed the use of training methods that were illegal in Denmark, as well as other controversial methods that were hidden from customers and visitors.
Notable Horses
* Blue Hors Cavan - 1990 Bay Hanoverian Gelding (Cavalier x Damnatz)
** 2004 Athens Olympics - Team Fifth Place, Individual Ninth Place
** 2005 FEI World Cup Final - Fifth Place
** 2005 European Championships - Team Sixth Place, Individual Ninth Place
* Blue Hors Matine - 1997 Gray Danish Warmblood Mare (Silvermoon x Matador)
** 2006 World Equestrian Games - Team Fourth Place, Individual Bronze Medal, Individual Silver Medal Freestyle
* Gredstedgards Casmir - 1999 Dark Bay Danish Warmblood Gelding (Continue x Rastell)
** 2007 European Championships - Team Sixth Place, Individual 13th Place, Individual Ninth Place Freestyle
** 2008 FEI World Cup Final - Seventh Place
* Blue Hors Don Schufro - 1993 Chestnut Oldenburg Stallion (Donnerhall)
** 2008 Beijing Olympics - Team Bronze Medal, Individual Tenth Place
* Carabas - 1998 Dark Bay Holsteiner Stallion (Carnaby x Roberto)
** 2009 European Championships - Team Fifth Place, Individual 29th Place
* Akeem Foldager - 2002 Bay Danish Warmblood Gelding (Akinos x Loran)
** 2013 European Championships - Team Fourth Place, Individual 23rd Place
* Ferrari OLD - 2012 Dark Bay Oldenburg Stallion (Foundation 2 x Blue Hors Hotline)
** 2017 FEI Dressage Young Horse World Championships - Silver Medal
* Springbank VH - 2010 Chestnut Swedish Warmblood Gelding (Skovens Rafael x De Niro)
** 2017 FEI Dressage Young Horse World Championships - 14th Place
References
External links
Helgstrand Dressageofficial website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Helgstrand, Andreas
Danish dressage riders
Living people
1977 births
Danish male equestrians
Olympic equestrians for Denmark
Equestrians at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Equestrians at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Olympic bronze medalists for Denmark
Olympic medalists in equestrian
Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics