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| A RIDE TO HISTORY. ELLESSE JORDAN TZINBERG-GUNDERSEN and her horse Triviant 2, at the 2018 World Cup Dressage Finals,Paris France, Photo: Ellesse Tzinberg FB Page. |
One of the least popular sports in the Philippines is
equestrianism, the art of horseback riding. It is a competitive discipline
associated only with the rich, the royals and prominent old families. Ask an ordinary
sports fan, and chances are, he would be hard-pressed to name even 2 or 3
Filipino equestrians. Asian Gold medallist Mikee Cojuangco would probably be
top-of-mind, as she was also an actress, visible on TV and the silver screen
Fewer still are the riding grounds and equestrian
facilities, mostly located in elite clubs such as the members-only Manila Polo
Club. That—and the expensive 'high fashion' riding gear: the white breeches, jackets,
helmets, top hats, vests , gloves and knee-high boots--- only served to
highlight the exclusivity and inaccessibility of the sport.
But one Kapampangan-American broke the mold by rising
from a family of modest background to become a world-class equestrienne—Ellesse
Jordan Tzinberg. Last year, she accomplished the unthinkable: she became the first Southeast Asian
equestrienne and the first Filipino to qualify in the FEI (Fédération Equestre
Internationale) World Cup Dressage 2018 held in Paris, France.
In an event dominated by top athletes from first-world
countries like Europe and the Americas, Tzinberg, riding on her horse Triviant
and representing third-world Philippines, made history just by being there—one
of the qualifiers from 20 countries to make it to the World Cup Dressage
finals.
The daughter of Kapampangan Agnes Samaniego Tolentino , and American-Australian Sennett Tzinberg,
Tzinberg was born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on 17 December 1991. She has roots
in Lubao, where her mother was born, and in Bacolor and Mabalacat, hometowns of
her maternal great-grandparents.
But it was in Malaysia that Tzinberg spent her growing-up
years, where, at age 6, she started
riding lessons. Her mom would often tell her stories of her own grandmother,
Generosa Morales Samaniego, who played tennis and rode horses—hobbies deemed
too taxing for women in those days. Could she have inherited her ‘riding genes’ from her
maternal ancestor? Certainly, it’s a possibility not to be discounted!
In Malaysia, equestrian sports has more following than in
the Philippines, introduced as early as the 1800s by British colonizers. By 8,
Tzinberg began competing, and later focused on the dressage events—where rider
and horse go through a series of “tests”, prescribed series of movements ridden
within an arena, and evaluated and scored by judges.
At 12 years old, Tzinberg became the highest ranked dressage
rider in the FEI World Dressage Challenge “under 14” age group in her region in
Asia. Four years later, the 16 year old earned an NCAA equestrian scholarship
at Kansas State University, and moved to the U.S.
Her promising career was sidetracked by a serious car
accident sustained in 2009, which required her to undergo months of
rehabilitation and therapy. After making a full recovery and finishing her
collegiate studies, she went to Paris
where she was serendipitously discovered as a commercial, print and runway
model. For two years, she set aside her beloved sport, but in 2012, Tzinberg
resumed riding.
Tzinberg took a serious step in her career by moving to Skane, Sweden in 2014 to
train under husband-and-wife team Charlotte and Rasmus Haid-Bondergaard. The
next year, she made her international debut in U25 Grand Prix level with her horse
Pavarotti. Soon she was competing and winning in several international events.
She became the first Asian to ride at the 2015 Adequan
Global Dressage Festival in Wellington, Florida. There, she also became the
first rider to place and ribbon at the festival in the CDI Grand Prix events.
Back in Europe in 2016, Tzinberg competed in more CDI events including Hagen, Odense, and
Falsterbo where she placed consistently placed among the top 5. Her biggest
thrill was winning her first Grand Prix at the Everlovs Midsommer Dressage Fest
in Sweden.
While campaigning all over the world, Tzinberg never lost
sight of her roots. In fact, she she made it her goal to ride for the
Philippines at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. When that did not materialize, she
eyed a spot in the FEI World Cup Final. She applied for a “domiciled athlete”
place, and based on her excellent performance record, Tzinberg was picked to
compete in the prestigious World Cup Dressage event.
When she landed in Paris in April 2018 for the
competition, the Filipina trailblazer created quite a stir with the media for her singular achievement as the first
ever Southeast Asian--and Filipino--to make it through the World Cup finals. The
experience led her to gush: “ It’s really incredible just to be around these
riders that I looked up to my whole life and
never could have dreamt that being on the same startlist as them and
going head-to-head with them—so that is really something I haven’t quite wrapped
around”.
It was thus a proud moment for Ellesse Jordan Tzinberg
when she took her place in the arena with the Philippine flag displayed on her
horse’s saddle pad for all the world to see. She would place 18th overall, which was not
enough for her to advance to the freestyle competition. But, as the Fédération Equestre
Internationale noted—“she would go home knowing she has made history in Paris”.
SOURCES:
Many thanks to Agnes Sennett Tzinberg and Rey
Tolentino, mother and uncle respectively of Ellesse Tzinberg, for some of her personal
and professional background.
Tzinberg
Receives Second Extra Starting Place for 2018 World Cup Finals, http://eurodressage.com/2018/03/14/tzinberg-receives-second-extra-starting-place-2018-world-cup-finals
Ellesse Jordan Tzinberg Will Make History At the FEI
World Cup Finals,by Justine Griffin, April 3, 2018,
Exclusive Dressage highlights from the FEI World Cup™
Dressage final in Paris | Equestrian World, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lu7bvsBhf3o