Anna Schönenberger

”Hello!
My name is Anna Schönenberger and I live nearby the beautiful lake of Konstanz in Switzerland.  My first dogs were Dobermans, and from the year 1995 I’m inexplicably infected with the agility virus. Also all my next dogs – Dainty Sweet Black Chevers (Border collie; *2002-2015), Agil do Vento do mar (Podengo Portugues Pequeno; *2007), Batman Rose Speedlight (Patterdale Terrier; *2016) and Good Boy Robin Rose Speedlight (Patterdale Terrier; *2021) are or were all sharing this passion with me.

At the moment Batman is performing in Medium 3, an d I run from time to time with my friends Border Collie, Crazy Coconut of Kaktux Land in Large 3, and Boston Terrier Hi I’m E.T. in Small 1.

I love what I do and I do what I love. I’m agility and clicker method trainer and massage healer for dogs. In January 2020 my dream came true when I passed my final judge exam. I really love to judge – this feeling, when someone reads my course in just the perfect way for his own dog, and perform in breathtaking harmony.

In my courses I want the teams to display their skills and potential, but also have a lot of fun regardless of the result. I always try to give the handler and the dog real and fair opportunity to solve situations laid on the course.

I really feel honored to build the courses and judge on Nordic Championship 2023. I am looking forward to all the nice runs, nice people and dogs and the nice time! May the best competitors win!”

Esa Muotka

“I am Esa Muotka, agility enthusiast since 1994. My first dog, Border Collie Tomppa came to my household in 1993 and with Tomppa we were bitten by the agility bug. In 1995, our club Helsingin Agility Urheilijat was founded in my living room in cooperation with Tuulia Liuhto, Seppo and Anja Savikko and Katja Kinnarinen.

In 2008, I received the rights of an agility judge and have been allowed to judge both standard and major agility competitions in Finland and elsewhere in Europe. In 2014, I was with Border Collie Tiisti in the Finnish EO team and was appointed one of the judges for the EO 2023 Games.

I strive to create a relaxed and good mood for everyone in agility competitions. As a judge, I strive to design action-packed courses where the handler is forced to trust their dog and the dog must have good obstacle skills. In course design, I want to make sure that the lines are logical and safe for the dog, and that the handler’s placement and the skills of the dog can make up for the handler’s physical shortcomings.

Agility is at its best when handlers have a good vibe regardless of the results, and you can see how the dogs enjoy getting to run on the course at full speed.

For all the agility enthusiasts, the volunteers and competitors, I wish good and refreshing time with our favourite hobby.”