What led to your job working with Diamante Farms?
Two years ago, I was recommended by a friend. I have been a groom for 30 years, and I have worked with jumpers for 20 years. So it was nice to have a change. I had never worked in dressage before.
How would you describe Dünensee’s personality?
We call him Denzel or Duni for short. He is very quiet in the stall. And he is really good with everything and everybody. He loves his stall mates as he does not really like to be by himself. He’s always looking for his friends. He loves apples, but bananas are his favorite snack. He loves going out in the paddock and being outside.
How did you prepare Dünensee for “Friday Night Stars” FEI World Cup Grand Prix Freestyle?
We have the horses at the show Wednesday through Saturday, so he’s already there. He gets a bath after he’s ridden in the morning, and so he is clean and ready to be tacked up when the time comes. We use the magnetic blanket an hour before he has to leave the stall and keep it on for about half an hour. I think it relaxes them. I start tacking him up about half an hour before we have to go because he’s already clean and groomed, so it doesn’t take long. But everything has to be perfect.
What do you love most about your job?
I like to work with horses, and I like the owners. I really like working with dressage. I worked with jumpers for 20 years – I was with Twin Oaks before I came to work at Diamante Farms. Working with jumpers you are very busy all day, all the time, and there are no weeks when you are not showing. I like the fact that working in dressage is much calmer. Also we are based at the farm year-round except for maybe two or three trips to Ocala, [Florida,] so that is also very nice. It is a beautiful place.
What advice would you give to someone wanting to work as a groom at the top level of the sport?
My advice would be to pay attention and make sure you know exactly what the rules are if you are working with FEI horses. The rules change, and it is important to keep up with new rules. We discuss the rules as a team so we know of any changes. Things like knowing what medications you can and cannot give to the horses competing in FEI classes is one example of a rule that you need to pay careful attention to.
Read more about Kohmann and Dünensee‘s win!
Featured photo courtesy of Susan J Stickle Photography.
Read more stories about winning grooms of the 2025 season in Wellington:
* About Denise Moriarty
* About the team behind Ondine d’Orleans
* About Tim Delovich
* About Marina Lemay
* About Luis Mandujano and Ladislao Lara
* About Remigio Padilla
* About Sofie Karlsson
* About Anna Halasz
* About Tamiles Pezzim
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Sarah Eakin has a long history of sports reporting and covering equestrian disciplines – particularly show jumping, polo, racing and dressage – for a range of international publications as writer and editor-in-chief. In 2024, Sarah launched Paper Horse – an online magazine with an eclectic mix of stories from the horse world at www.paperhorsemedia.com. Paper Horse is an official Media Partner of Wellington International. Sarah was born in England and came to the US in 1996 as Sidelines’ Polo Editor; at the time she was chief polo writer at the Horse and Hound and Polo Correspondent to The Daily Telegraph. She married US professional polo player Gary Eakin and stayed Stateside traveling throughout North America while covering equestrian events. She is also an author; Wed, White and Blue, her first novel is on Amazon.
