Salinero

Behind the gawky facade of this sensitive soul lay an outstanding talent. Alice Collins uncovers the story of a powerhouse who set global dressage alight

- Alice Collins

HOW a jumping-bred horse who hated halting became a double Olympic dressage champion is no mystery to his long-time rider, Anky van Grunsven. In fact, Salinero’s renowned inability to stand still in tests was also the foundation of his strength: energy in bucketloads and an ever-brimming desire to work. That, coupled with his extraordinary movement, was a glorious cocktail.

It was never the rigours of the dressage itself that taxed Salinero, but the peripheral stresses that accompany it.

“I trained him with a heart monitor for a while to see which exercises made it beat faster,” explains Anky. “And the only time it really went up was when I walked him out of the gate for what I thought was a relaxing hack. For him, that took more energy than all the grand prix work.”

And even though he was a scaredy-cat, Salinero trusted Anky enough to become Olympic champion in Athens and Hong Kong.

“He was made for grand prix,” she enthuses. “The fact that he did three Olympics [finishing sixth individually in London 2012] and was still fit and sound and happy at 18, that tells you. When it’s too difficult for them, it costs a lot of energy and horses can’t stay healthy and fit that long with the additional stresses. For Salinero, it was always playful.”

Five-star judge Stephen Clarke concurs.

“The length of his career is testament to the horse’s management,” he says. “That he could be so successful for so many years and retire sound says so much about the way he was trained and looked after. Many of Anky’s other horses had lengthy careers too, like Bonfire.