General

STAWAG has had close ties to the equestrian sport in Aachen since the 1980s already – the traditional company sponsored the silver medal at the 1986 World Championships via the City of Aachen. The first cooperation agreement for the CHIO Aachen followed in the year 1999.

Floodlit classes, photovoltaic systems and CHIO-STAWAG-TV are just some of the aspects that shape the partnership between the energy service provider and the CHIO Aachen. Dr. Christian Becker and Wilfried Ullrich, who form the Executive Board of STAWAG, talked about the developments over the past 25 years.
A quarter of a century of sponsoring – a long time, over the course of which a lot has happened. Tell me your thoughts about the development of the partnership and also that of the CHIO Aachen?
Dr. Christian Becker: In my opinion the development of the partnership was always very harmonious. We have a really professional partner in the whole ART and ALRV team. The CHIO Aachen is a very significant event for the region, which also brings our company an absolutely positive advertising effect every time.
Wilfried Ullrich: My first point of contact with the CHIO Aachen was in 2004, watching the four-in-hand driving in the Forest of Aachen with my children back then. For me, as somebody from the region, it was indeed a radical change, when everything was centralised at the Soers in 2006. It was a positive step for the show, which increased the presence of the event even further.
2006 is a good cue, regarding the infrastructure. Since then we have enjoyed that special evening atmosphere with world-famous classes like the Mercedes-Benz Nations’ Cup as floodlit events, also thanks to STAWAG.
Becker: These classes in that unique atmosphere have become an integral part of the event. They have established themselves to such an extent that I can hardly believe that the floodlights have only been there for just under 20 years. Incidentally, for my friends from the equestrian scene the Mercedes-Benz Nations’ Cup is THE event of all events. The tickets for this pageant are, alongside the Rolex Grand Prix, the most coveted among our clientele. Which is why it is great that further floodlit competitions are meanwhile staged on the Wednesday and the Saturday. Riding simply connects people and the CHIO Aachen is a fantastic platform for activating and keeping business contacts alive.
In the meantime your company shows its commitment in many ways. With the STAWAG Stand, the STAWAG Opening Jumping Competition and the STAWAG-Prize on Thursday, but also with the STAWAG obstacle in the cross country and CHIO-STAWAG-TV in the Main Stadium. How important is it to you as a company that you are visible as a regional firm in the scope of the worldwide famous CHIO Aachen?
Becker: Extremely important! Above all the screens in the Main Stadium offer us added value. We are namely not especially dependent on being present on TV all the time, our target group is indeed regional, and they are also here in the stadium on-site. So, here the screens with the CHIO-STAWAG-TV and of course also our stand are very beneficial because we need a huge amount of presence. We are very grateful that we can tread these paths together.
Ullrich: It also fits in very well with the step we are now taking in the region with our corporate development and the merger with enwor. The CHIO Aachen is not only relevant for the city and the entire district of Aachen, but also beyond and attracts a huge audience.
STAWAG and the CHIO Aachen share significant values, namely themes like social responsibility and sustainability in the environmental sector. How is this reflected in the partnership?
Becker: As a company we stand for sustainability. Charging stations, the provision of green electricity, regenerative own power generation on the grounds – the partnership becomes even closer through such themes, because it is even more perceivable then.
Ullrich: The theme Youth is also firmly anchored in our DNA. School projects and cooperations on energy topics belong to this just as much as sponsoring shirts in the field of sports. That is why the CHIO Aachen Children’s Day, which is staged on our stand, serves as a perfect building block. This increases the event’s reach and underlines its folk festival character.
What other themes are on the agenda in future for the partnership between STAWAG and CHIO Aachen?
Becker: We will continue to accompany the development that the ALRV has laid out for itself with our expertise in the future. This entails for instance photovoltaic systems on the roofs, the expansion of the Sportpark Soers, but also the CHIO Aachen CAMPUS. This fits into our focus on the promotion of youth and of mass sports. We intend to provide continued support on the theme of sustainability as well, to ensure the show has a long-term perspective. But I am not worried about that at all!

The World Equestrian Festival stands for world-class sport, but above all for the biggest folk and family festival in the region. Soers Sunday, the traditional Open Day demonstrated precisely this today.

The weather gods were gracious: The dark clouds dispersed at the Aachen Soers just in time for the start of Soers Sunday and took the rain that had pelted down in the night with them. So, there were plenty of curious visitors waiting along the Albert-Servais-Allee even before the gates officially opened at 10 o’clock. Dancing cheerleaders weaved their way in between the City Riders of Aachen to greet the visitors at the Main Entrance. And the ladies from the US national team, USA Cheer with their white pompons, were thus the first popular photo motif at the showgrounds. And there are plenty of the latter around the grounds this year again, all of which have the same theme: This year’s partner country, the USA. The colourful motifs, such as nostalgic, typically American-style carousels or the Statue of Liberty invited the guests to take jolly selfies. Young and old alike took advantage of this offer and many more in abundance. The “Open Day” that the Aachen-Laurensberger Rennverein e. V. (ALRV) traditionally invites everyone to attend with free admission, held an action-packed programme in store. Not only the shopping mile with over 200 international exhibitors and diversified catering options was well-attended, so were the plentiful attractions that invited the guests on many corners to spend time, marvel and take part. The perfect day out with the family or friends!

The action kicked off at 11.30 a.m. in the Deutsche Bank Stadium with an ecumenical church service under the motto “Gospel for everyone”. Then, at 1.00 p.m. the colourful entertainment programme with many exceptional show acts gave a small preview of what we can look forward to during the Opening Ceremony on Tuesday evening: The cheerleaders of the American national team, USA Cheer, were also on board and the CHIO Aachen mascot, Karli, also swung his hips to their dance moves. Later in the day, a herd of Shetland ponies and Mustangs galloped through the Deutsche Bank Stadium. Also on the agenda, the cart horse, Kalle; the animal trainer, Laury Tisseur and the radio star, Daniel Danger, who impressed the crowd with his entertaining vaulting performance. In the course of the charity cooperation “Moments of Luck”, the therapy centres from the region presented themselves under the motto “Therapeutic riding in the land of unlimited opportunities” and the youngest visitors enjoyed pony rides and a visit from the WDR mouse, that resulted in plenty of beaming smiles on the children’s faces.

Philip Erbers, Board member of the organisers, the Aachen-Laurensberger Rennverein e.V. (ALRV), was also delighted about the enthusiasm of the visitors, who strolled around the traditional showgrounds in high numbers: “The CHIO Aachen 2024 couldn’t have got off to a better start.” He was “very satisfied with a super first weekend”, which including the two “Horse & Symphony” concerts, the vaulting and the Open Day, attracted more than 40,000 visitors, the attendance on Soers Sunday alone totalled 26,500 visitors.

Good news for all the locals planning a visit to the Soers Sunday, the traditional Open Day of the CHIO Aachen 2024: The rain is going to stop and the forecasts of the German weather service promise a dry day with pleasant temperatures from midday onwards. There will only be one change of venue: The organisers have decided to hold the colourful and varied programme in the Deutsche Bank Stadium. You can look forward to highlights with lots of cheerleaders, mustangs, cold-blooded horses, pony rides and much more from 1 pm. Admission is from 10 am. The ecumenical church service starts at 11.30 a.m. – also in the Deutsche Bank Stadium.

Take the fantastic live music of the Aachen Symphony Orchestra, graceful dancers, fast-paced carriages, a touch of nostalgic and of course plenty of horses. The result on Friday and Saturday evening was a staging of the classic “Horse & Symphony” concert that took the crowd in the Deutsche Bank Stadium off on a journey through time across the 100 years of equestrian show history at the Aachen Soers.

“How it all began” – the first show performance of the popular format that kicks off Germany’s largest sporting event on the Friday and Saturday evening couldn’t have been more appropriate. The Aachen-Laurensberger Rennverein (ALVR) is celebrating 100 years of equestrian show history at the Aachen Soers this year. And so, the State Stud of North Rhine-Westphalia brought back memories of the early 1920s at the beginning of the show with its draught horse quadrille. With their powerful performance, the crowd’s favourite heavy weights literally made the earth quake in the Deutsche Bank Stadium and proved to be the perfect prelude of the nostalgic journey through the last century.

Several of the most popular pieces of classic music conducted by the General Music Director, Christopher Ward, followed: From the legendary “Tritsch Tratsch Polka” by Johann Strauss, to popular melodies from “Indiana Jones” and “Dances with Wolves”, through to pop hits by ABBA, Elton John and Robbie Williams. They were accompanied by action-packed performances. The Quadrille Team Emsland paid tribute to the puissance record set by Willibert Mehlkopf in 1985, speedy thoroughbreds from the Almenräder Racing Stables galloped round the arena, the Britta Rasche-Merkt Show Team impressed the audience with a spectacular fire show, whilst Kenzie Dysli and Laury Tisseur whisked the spectators off to beautiful Andalusia. With their impressive liberty dressage of the Pura Raza Española, which was accompanied by the emotional live performance of the soprano artist, Inga Wea, the two horse trainers conjured up memories of the first partner country of the CHIO Aachen in the year 2001: Spain! Meanwhile a popular tradition, this year’s partner country, the USA, definitely couldn’t be missing either. The land of unlimited opportunities was represented by Sandra Rohde’s Western Show Team, and they transformed the arena into the Wild West. And at the latest, when no less than four driving sport legends – Michael Freund and Rainer Duen from Germany; the Swiss driver, Daniel Würgler; and the driver from Sweden, Frederik Persson – and their magnificent teams of horses looked back on those days in the past when the driving competitions were still battled out in the Forest of Aachen, the spectators were on their feet. There was also a standing ovation for the Master of Riding, Ingrid Klimke and her daughter, Greta Busacker. Their graceful pas de deux was not only reminiscent of the first European Dressage Championships in Aachen, but also of their father and grandfather, Dr. Reiner Klimke, who having won two gold medals was the acclaimed hero of the Championships in the year 1967. Goosebumps galore! And the latter were also guaranteed as the Youth Choir of the Theatre of Aachen sang the famous song “hallelujah” by Leonard Cohen under the direction of Jori Klomp and the crowd turned the Deutsche Bank Stadium into a sea of lights with their smartphones. That was magical!

The starting signal for the CHIO Aachen 2024 has only just been given, but while the best horse and rider combinations set off to write sporting history, we are already looking ahead to the coming year. Because in 2025, from 27th June to 6th July, the most famous competitions in the world will once again be looking for their winners. The best horses, the best riders, the best sport in the most spectacular atmosphere – this is the promise of the CHIO Aachen in 2025. And you can be there. It’s worth being quick!

Tickets are available here in the online shop, on +49-241-9171111 and at the Aachen-Laurensberger Rennverein office.

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Sorry, this entry is only available in Deutsch.

Sorry, this entry is only available in Deutsch.

Sorry, this entry is only available in Deutsch.

Norbert Laufs, Chairman of the Sparkasse Aachen revealed that the ceremonial presentation of the special prize in the Sparkassen-Youngster-Cup is his favourite moment at the CHIO Aachen every year. That is not surprising since the winner of this class traditionally wins an aspiring top horse in mini format: A foal with an exquisite pedigree, which after galloping joyfully around the Holy Grass can first of all look forward to a relaxed upbringing on the fields of its new owner. “Standing in the middle of the stadium, feeling the atmosphere and watching the enthusiastic crowd, is an indescribable experience each time anew,” commented Norbert Laufs, and also delights the star-studded field of participants of this competition year after year. Because a glance at the top rankings of the past years shows how popular this competition, which is supported by the Sparkasse and is a fixed item on the CHIO Aachen’s programme, is among the equestrian world elite. Among others, the two later winning pairs of the Rolex Grand Prix, Gerrit Nieberg and Ben as well as Daniel Deußer and Killer Queen, have already notched up top placings on this list. And the Swiss rider, Steve Guerdat, also used the Sparkassen-Youngster-Cup in the past to prepare his later European Champion, Dynamix de Belheme, for greater tasks.

The Sparkasse has already partnered this famous competition since 1981. But the bank’s involvement with Germany’s biggest sports event began much earlier. The Sparkasse already became a sponsor of the World Equestrian Festival in 1954, and has also been sponsoring classes in different disciplines since 1974. The CHIO Aachen and the Sparkasse always was and remains to be a perfect fit. A perfect partnership that has meanwhile excelled for 70 years through its stability, trust and joint passion: offering the people something big, something special. “The CHIO Aachen is a fantastic, international flagship for our city and is not only a top sporting, but also a top social event here in our region,” stated Norbert Laufs, who also emphasised that promoting the youth and mass sports is also a matter of great importance to the traditional bank. For example, the Sparkasse also supported the staging of the German Youth Championships in the years 2010 and 2017. And the Sparkasse has also helped vaulting become a fixed part of the schedule at the CHIO Aachen. Since 2007, the world’s best vaulters have been traditionally honoured with the Prize of Sparkasse on the first weekend of the show.

“The sweet anticipation increases every day,” said Norbert Laufs shortly before the start of the CHIO Aachen 2024. And once again the Chairman of the Sparkasse Aachen is particularly looking forward to the prize-giving ceremony of the Sparkassen-Youngster-Cup, when the victorious rider will, also in this anniversary year, be delighted to win a fabulous foal again.

Sorry, this entry is only available in Deutsch.