Paris 2024 rider opens up about her medal-winning ‘Sun King’ – and why horses are the ‘most important judge’

The Netherlands’ decorated para dressage rider Sanne Voets has opened up about the special bond she has with her very own “Sun King” Demantur, as she claims her first medal of the Paris Paralympics.

This morning (4 September) Sanne and Demantur won silver in the grade IV individual competition. Sanne’s compatriot Demi Haerkens and Duala won gold, and Germany’s Anna-Lena Niehues took bronze.

Sanne and the 16-year-old Vivaldi gelding have built up a remarkable partnership in their nine years together. The pair now hold four Paralympic medals, nine European medals, and six world medals.

“This morning when I was on my way from the village to the stables I just had this thought that with a horse like this, a horse that is everything I could have ever dreamed of, he is my best friend,” said Sanne.

“The path we’ve taken, every decision we have made was for the benefit of the horse. There is no horse like Demantur. With a horse like him, and a team like mine, you always win. Riding Demi and with my team here, being with so many friends and family, I feel like I’m a trillionaire.”

When asked what makes Demi so special, Sanne said “everything”.

“I know that’s a cheesy answer, but it’s literally everything. He is such a special boy. When he first entered my stables he was so shy and insecure, and he has grown a lot as a person,” she said.

“But we did that together. He is always trying his heart out and he has tried so hard to be perfect from the beginning. When things don’t work out, I think he feels like he has let me down, but I tell him: ‘It’s ok boy, I know that you’re trying. You’re a horse, not a human, and it’s enough that you’re trying. We’re learning together, we’re developing together and we’re a team’. And that’s what makes our sport so magical.”

Sanne said she and her team “set the bar even higher” after Tokyo – but the focus was not entirely on medals.

“We focused even more on the way that we work towards the goal. The most important judge to me is my horse. There’s been so many decisions, and so much work in the last three years building towards these Paris Games, and the judges only see the test inside the whiteboards,” said Sanne.

“To me the most important thing is all the work and all the things that have happened before that. Of course this is where the medals are decided, and the field is very strong.”

“All about the Sun King”

The equestrian events of the Paris Paralympics are taking place at the Palace of Versailles, the former residence of Louis XIV, who was known as the Sun King for choosing the sun as his personal emblem.

Sanne Voets revealed that spectators can look forward to a new freestyle from her and Demi at the Paris Paralympics on Saturday (7 September) that will be “all about the Sun King”.

“Demi is my own Sun King. That’s why I waved at the palace today, to say thank you for lending us your property,” said Sanne, who visited Paris last April to learn more about its equestrian history.

“When we heard about the competition being held in this place, which has so much equestrian history, I read up so much about it. I hadn’t been to Paris before and said ‘I have to go there’. I really wanted to feel the atmosphere and learn about its past.”

During her trip to Paris Sanne visited the royal stables where she learned about its 400-year history.

“They told me about things that happened here 400 years ago, and how they still work with horses every day, and still with such a beautiful motto. They work from the belief that our horses don’t owe us anything – horses are not an instrument for us to reach our goals and ambitions, but we are an instrument to help our horses develop into beautiful, strong, healthy, happy athletes,” said Sanne.

“That resonated so much with me, so that made it so much more special for me to be here today.”

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