Sophia Ludvigsen will succeed Nanna Skodborg Merrald at Blue Hors

As the Blue Hors stud farm announced today, Sophia Ludvigsen will assume responsibility for the training and conditioning of the stud farm’s dressage horses on July 6. She will be supported in this role by Allan Grøn as a trainer and instructor. Both Ludvigsen and Grøn have worked for Blue Hors in the past.

Ludvigsen has changed his mind

Less than two months ago, 23-year-old Sophia Ludvigsen decided to leave the Blue Hors stud farm after six highly successful years. Among other achievements, she became the 2024 U25 European Individual Champion riding Blue Hors Quintana and won the Danish Championships multiple times, riding various horses.

As a junior, she had been given the opportunity to take on Quintana, a “quantum leap” horse, as part of her employer’s talent development program. In 2021, the pair made their championship debut at the Junior European Championships, where they won the bronze medal as part of the team. In the Young Riders category, Ludvigsen achieved great success with Blue Hors Elliott, winning one silver medal individually and one gold medal as part of the team at the U21 European Championships. Meanwhile, she continued to train Quintana, developing him into a Grand Prix horse with the aforementioned result.

In early May, she announced on her Instagram page that she wanted to leave Blue Hors. According to her own statement, she wasn’t yet sure what her next step would be. Now she’s back. The Blue Hors stud farm’s website states: “Sophia has previously worked at Stutteri Ask-Blue Hors and therefore brings with her in-depth knowledge of both the horses and the daily work routines. She is also an experienced rider and a promising talent in Danish dressage.”

Great opportunity

The fact that she is now able to take full responsibility for the training and preparation of Blue Hors’ dressage horses opens up great opportunities for Ludvigsen. The careers of several Danish championship riders have really taken off here, including those of Daniel Bachmann and Nanna Skodborg Merrald. In addition, Blue Hors currently has one of the world’s best young dressage horses in its stables: St. Paris, the former world champion among five-year-old dressage horses.

Bonsai, the now eight-year-old daughter of Baron (whose sire enjoyed great success with Ludvigsen in the Small Tour), was crowned Danish Champion of Young Horses last year with Nanna Skodborg Merrald.

There is also Viva Vegas by Viva Gold, a former premium stallion and top-ranked horse at the DSP licensing in Munich. He was most recently presented by Ludvigsen’s new assistant trainer, Allan Grøn, who was filling in for Nanna Skodborg Merrald while she was on maternity leave. This, too, is a collaboration that has been resumed.

About Allan Grøn

Allan Grøn started his own business in 2014. Prior to that, he had, among other achievements, ridden Blue Hors Zick Flower to the finals twice at the World Championships for Young Dressage Horses and also competed with Blue Hors Zatchmo—who would later become a Grand Prix horse—in the Small Tour. Grøn has a strong reputation as a trainer in Denmark; for example, he serves as a test rider at stallion performance tests.

And what is Nanna Skodborg Merrald up to?

The news that Nanna Skodborg Merrald, a new mother, was ending her partnership with Blue Hors came as a surprise—at least to outsiders. After all, they had celebrated great successes together, such as Denmark’s historic team gold at the 2022 World Championships on home soil, individual silver and team bronze at the 2023 European Championships, team silver at the 2024 Olympics, various podium finishes at World Cup finals, and so on and so forth.

On her Instagram page, Nanna Skodborg Merrald has now answered questions about what’s next for her. With her two six-year-old mares, Sahara and Sevilla—the latter of whom won silver at the 2025 Danish Young Horse Championships—she has two horses of her own, and she is currently focusing on training them alongside her role as a mother to her daughter Caroline.

However, Nanna Skodborg Merrald emphasizes that her goal is to start her own business as a horse trainer. She wants to stay in Denmark and is currently looking for a location—and “hopefully some great horses.” Her goal is to compete in championships for Denmark again. She also explicitly mentions the 2028 Olympic Games.