International Arabian Sport Festival '25

✨ International Arabian Sport Festival 2025 ✨

What a weekend... filled with pride, exhaustion, tension, valuable lessons, and above all: connection.

Last Thursday afternoon, Yah’ri and I headed to Someren for the very first edition of the International Arabian Sport Festival. Upon arrival, I settled Yah’ri into his stall and pitched my tent at the nearby campsite. Not long after, the other DAWRA members arrived, staying in the cottage next to my tent. That evening, we rode our horses to stretch their legs and enjoyed a lovely evening together.

Friday – Advanced

I chose to ride in the Advanced classes on Friday, to ease into the rhythm, get familiar with the arena, and assess the level of competition.

🥇 Hunter under Saddle Advanced – 1st place of 6 riders 🥈 Showmanship at Halter Advanced – 2nd place of 4 riders (71.5 pts) 🥈 Western Pleasure Advanced – 2nd place of 9 riders 🥈 Ranch Riding Advanced – 2nd place (68 pts, only half a point behind the winner!)

That evening, we had a fun dinner at 't Keelven with fellow AVS and DAWRA members. A glass of wine and lots to celebrate.

Saturday – Master After a short night of (satisfied) sleep, the Master classes were next. Again, strong and well-filled groups:

🥇 Hunter under Saddle Master – 1st place of 8 riders 🥇 Showmanship at Halter Master – 1st place (70.5 pts) 🥉 Western Pleasure Master – 3rd place of 8 riders Western Pleasure remains a tough one for us – especially collecting the canter is still a challenge for Yah’ri and me. But I’m proud of the steady picture we presented!

And then, time for a fun class: 🥇 Prosecco Pleasure Jackpot Class – riding with a glass of prosecco in hand while doing all sorts of funny tasks. Including cantering with the glass at your lips. And somehow… we won! Just barely!

Another evening at 't Keelven with everyone. Tired, fulfilled, and yes… later to bed than planned.

Sunday – Master Finals After a rainy night and three intense days, I started Sunday feeling worn out. But there were still some important classes to ride:

Type & Conformation – a mandatory class if you want to compete for the Allround title. Horses are judged on Arabian type and conformation. Great to witness, but honestly? Not my favorite.

🥈 Hunter under Saddle Finals – 2nd place of 5 riders One judge placed us 1st, but the leading judge placed us 2nd. It hit me hard and brought on a few tears. The exhaustion and tension all came out. But with great comments from the jury, saying he went even better than the day before, I was proud.

🥈 Showmanship at Halter Finals – 2nd place I regained focus and rode a super clean pattern that scored 75 points, just 1.5 points behind the winner. So proud!

Western Pleasure Finals – our final class. The nerves had settled, but the fatigue caught up. Yah’ri decided that one corner of the arena was very scary and grew more tense every round. I chose to end the ride early. ❌ Not placed.

And honestly... that hurt. I cried – from disappointment, frustration, and just because I wanted to finish strong.

But what moved me deeply – in the best way – was the solidarity within DAWRA and AVS. In those tough moments, you truly feel the strength of this community. Members who come to you, give you a hug, whisper encouraging words... It gives you so much strength. That, to me, is the true value of this sport.

The drive home was tough – that’s when the real fatigue hits you.

📸 All photos in this post were taken by Yessica de Reus Fotografie – I’m so happy she captured the atmosphere and emotions so beautifully!