Although his last competition was at the Rio Olympics, dressage superstar Valegro will officially retire at the London Horse Show this December.
The ceremony – guaranteed to be an emotional one – will take place in Olympia’s Grand Hall on December 14 after the FEI World Cup Dressage Freestyle.
Both Charlotte Dujardin and Carl Hester will take part. “Valegro is a once-in-a-lifetime horse and owes us nothing,” says Charlotte. “I can’t wait to take him to Olympia and give him the send-off he deserves.”
“Valegro has done it all and we want him to go out in style!” adds Carl. “What better place than at Olympia? He loves the arena and being so close to the crowd. It is where he and Charlotte broke the world record in 2014 and it is the perfect place for our loyal British fans to say their farewell.”
Carl and Charlotte are also holding a special Q&A session the night before the ceremony.
Show Director, Simon Brooks-Ward says, “We are honoured that Charlotte and Carl have chosen Olympia as the place to retire Valegro. He is a true legend of equestrian sport and we will make sure that he has the perfect send-off.”
Many of the world’s top competitors will be in attendance, as once again Olympia hosts three FEI World Cup competitions: carriage driving (December 16-17), dressage (December 13-14) and show jumping (December 18). The climax of the seven-day equine extravaganza is show jumping’s Olympia Grand Prix on December 19.
