News - CHIO Presse Intranet 2024

Brilliant sport in the Marathon, the Prize of schwartz Group

06.07.2024 21:01

Hoards of visitors flooded into the grounds of…

Hoards of visitors flooded into the grounds of the Aachen Soers today to watch the Marathon of the Four-in-Hand Drivers, the Prize of schwartz Group, live. They were offered driving sport at its finest.

“It is a nice course! Technical, but also with obstacles that allow you to gallop through at a high speed” – is how the German coach, Karl-Heinz Geiger, described the Marathon course of the Four-in-Hand Drivers, which was designed by Alexander Flocke and led to the day being a fantastic advertisement for the driving sport.
Boyd Exell from Australia, who came second in the dressage completed the obstacle course in the fastest time today. When he drove over the finish line he was beaming from ear to ear. Not only because he had won the Prize of schwartz Group, but above all because his team gave him a fantastic feeling today. “The horses put in a super performance. They worked together as a team and were in flow. It was great fun!”

With an overall score of 104.48 minus points, Boyd Exell asserted himself against Michael Brauchle, who finished on a total score of 110.56 minus points. Third place went to Austria’s Daniel Schneiders (112.25). Mareike Harm (116.86) secured herself a remarkable sixth place. On the one hand, she was the second best German driver, on the other hand it is an historical achievement because it is the highest placing that a women has ever attained in the Marathon at the Soers. And it also meant she climbed up to second place in the combined individual classification, the Prize of Family Richard Talbot. Boyd Exell is currently in the lead, with the winner of the dressage, Chester Weber (USA) in third place. Weber finished twelfth in today’s competition.

The overall result of the German drivers is also sensational, they are on track to put an end to the Dutch team’s unbroken series of wins at the Soers. The Netherlands have been unbeaten since 2007. On a combined score of 318.520 minus points, the German team currently hold a clear lead in the Boehringer Ingelheim Nations Cup, ahead of the Netherlands (328.140) and Australia (332,880).

The national coach was correspondingly satisfied with the outcome of the day: “I am incredibly proud that we have such a clear lead and that three Germans are ranking under the best six!”

Namely in addition to Mareike Harm, Michael Brauchle is presently in fourth place and Georg von Stein is sixth.

So, now we have to keep our fingers crossed for tomorrow’s cone driving competition, the Prize of Event Rent GmbH.

Baumgürtel’s second victory in the Prize of Liselott and Klaus Rheinberger Foundation

06.07.2024 19:45

It was like déjà-vu in the Freestyle of…

It was like déjà-vu in the Freestyle of the Prize of Liselott and Klaus Rheinberger Foundation for Young Dressage Riders. Not only was Lana-Pinou Baumgürtel able to defend her top ranking, the top three were all able to confirm their form from yesterday’s class.

Lana-Pinou Baumgürtel headed the field with Emma in the Prize of Liselott and Klaus Rheinberger Foundation after notching up a score of 77.375 percent. As before, the Australian rider, Kate Kyros finished second with Intro K. Their score today: 76.475 percent. In third place once again the Danish rider, Sophia Ludvigsen with Touch of Olympic L (75.470). Baumgürtel, who celebrated her 19th birthday the first day she won here in Aachen, already had a super feeling on the warm-up arena. “Emma is in super form! That is the second time that we have performed the new freestyle at the show and it went super. I am very, very happy.”

The family of Kate Kyros were overjoyed at her coming second. This is her first season in Europe and the “freestyle expert“ Katrina Wüst at C awarded her an incredible 82.20 percent for the artistic execution, which was even more than the winner received. And the judge at B, Cesar Torrente, placed the pair in first place for both the artistic and technical performance. So, Down Under may perhaps be On Top soon.

Ben Maher wins the Allianz-Prize ahead of Vogel and Ward

06.07.2024 19:07

For the show-jumpers it is one of the…

For the show-jumpers it is one of the highlights of the entire CHIO Aachen week: the Allianz-Prize. Ben Maher made sure on Saturday that the Union Jack could also be hoisted in the afternoon after the SAP-Cup at midday.

The ten best pairs from the first round go through to the Winning Round of the Allianz-Prize. The riders start in reverse order according to their individual results from the first round, i.e. the best rider from round one is the last to go in round two. And that was Richard Vogel, the meanwhile most feared opponent for all of the show-jumpers.

The rider from the USA, McLain Ward and Callas had secured pole position in a time of 37.01, when Ben Maher entered the ring with Exit Remo. Maher was hungry for success. “The horses have actually jumped well so far, but I had picked up faults in the big classes. My owners are here, so I wanted to do my best to clinch the victory.” With this approach, he succeeded in steering his 15-year-old KWPN gelding (who is incidentally out of the same dam as Judy Reynolds’ (IRL) 2016 Olympic dressage horse, Vancouver K) round the course clear and in a faster time than Ward. The clock stopped at 36.54 seconds. Maher could only wait and hope that it would suffice. And it did.

Richard Vogel had saddled Cydello for the Allianz-Prize, the 10-year-old Hanoverian-bred Cascadello son, which one can meanwhile describe as being Vogel’s third horse after United Touch S and Cepano Baloubet. He has come second twice this week alone. Today, he picked up his third silver rosette after jumping clear in 36.90 seconds. McLain Ward and Callas finished third, whilst Ben Maher was delighted to have achieved his goal.

Whereby it hadn’t been that easy: “Normally Exit Remo has a very big stride. But I already noticed when I approached the first fence that he didn’t really want to go as fast as I wanted him too. So I had to push him. Which to be honest wasn’t a good feeling. But I cut a tight turn in front of the second obstacle, which hadn’t been my plan at all. But sometimes doing the unexpected turns out to your advantage and I think that is where I gained the time compared to the second place.” For Maher it was a special victory: “Every time you ride into the ring in Aachen for a class like this, it just as important as riding into a Grand Prix anywhere else. For me, my owners, my family – they are all here – so it was fantastic!” But the week is not over yet. “I hope the same happens tomorrow,” he commented.

Of course, both Richard Vogel and McLain Ward will do their best to prevent this. Vogel’s plan for tomorrow in the Grand Prix, that he is saddling his nominated Olympic horse, United Touch S, for: “To stay on the podium.” Ward will be riding Ilex, a horse that he hasn’t had for very long, but who is a “big jumper that could match Vogel’s stride in a battle”, he joked referring to the huge stride of United Touch S.

Birgit Rosenberg summed it up in a nutshell: “I wouldn’t be surprised if we see these riders here again tomorrow.”

Victory and personal best for Werth and Wendy in the MEGGLE-Prize

06.07.2024 17:40

After winning the Grand Prix, Isabell Werth also…

After winning the Grand Prix, Isabell Werth also notched up the victory in the Grand Prix Spéciale, the MEGGLE-Prize at the CHIO Aachen 2024 – and also prove that she does a good job as a mental coach.

Isabell Werth and Wendy de Fontaine clearly dominated the Grand Prix Spéciale, the MEGGLE-Prize after being awarded a score of 78.085 percent. That is a new personal best score for the ten-year-old, Danish-bred Sezuan daughter, who contested her fourth Spéciale with Werth. Only half a point separated the riders in second and third place. The head-to-head race in the ring went in favour of the Dutch rider, Dinja van Liere with her newcomer, Vita de Lusso, who with a score of 76.872 percent pipped Frederic Wandres with Bluetooth at the post (76.851). In points: the results were 1806.50 compared to 1806.0. It couldn’t have been closer.

Isabell Werth said about her ride today: “I must really say Wendy was fantastic today. We are growing together more and more. You can see it, you can feel it. It is a pleasure riding this horse. She always wants to give her best. It felt very harmonious today and I have the impression we are gradually becoming one unit.”

Dinja van Lieren’s Vita de Lusso is even younger than Wendy, just nine years old. Dinja van Liere has been riding him for three years. It is his first Grand Prix season and she was actually thinking about withdrawing from the Spéciale after coming fourth with him in the Grand Prix, the Prize of Family Tesch, because she didn’t think it could get much better. But: “My horse knocked me out today. He makes such quick progress. He was much better today than on Thursday. He gave me goosebumps today.” She reported that he too excels through his will to work and his go and that she is able to assert both to her advantage: “He relaxes more and more in the arena so that I actually get to ride rather than holding him back all the time. I am simply incredibly proud that I was able to fight my way up to the top between these strong German riders.”

Frederic Wandres was also highly satisfied with his and Bluetooth’s performance. For him this show was above all a challenge mentally. And the pressure was extremely high today. “It is not just about convincing the judges here, but also the dressage committee, that is selecting the team for the Olympic Games,” he explained. The CHIO Aachen is namely the final trial before the nominations for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. Wandres added: “At some shows one is in the flow and one rides on the wave from the beginning to the end. But at this show I made mistakes with Duke (of Britain, his second Grand Prix horse) and then I took them with me when I rode Bluetooth. That threw me off course a little. Normally, my strength is being able to deliver immaculate tests constantly. And I lost my self-confidence a bit.” Three words from Isabell Werth got him back on course: “Pull yourself together!”

Dreams come true in the SAP-Cup, Great Britain triumphs in the Nations‘ Cup

06.07.2024 16:09

Riders hugging each other, owners with tears in…

Riders hugging each other, owners with tears in their eyes and a Course Designer that would have preferably taken his leave from Aachen without any fuss. But a few other people had a word to say in the matter. The summary of a very special SAP-Cup at the CHIO Aachen 2024.

The Olympic gold medallist Julia Krajewski and her newcomer Nickel are the winners of the SAP-Cup 2024 on a score of 30.3 minus points. Second place went to the U25 aspiring eventing star, Calvin Böckmann with The Phantom Of The Opera. The latter ended the competition on their dressage result of 30.9 minus points. Prior to the class, EQuiRatings powered by SAP had published the statistics that in the scope of 420 eventing results over the past years only 20 pairs have ever finished the entire competition on their dressage score. A further two pairs joined this list today, in addition to Calvin, the Australian eventer, Christopher Burton with Clever Louis, who ultimately secured themselves fourth place. As the best rider on the British team, Laura Collett with Dacapo, slipped into third place between the two German riders and the stylistic rider from Down Under.

The team from Great Britain won the Nations’ Cup, the SAP-Cup, on a total score of 112.8 minus points, asserting themselves against the representatives of the partner country, the USA (123.7) ahead of the Irish team (138.0). Fourth place went to the German team (147.5).

The fact that the Brits were victorious in the Nations’ Cup – incidentally for the fourth time after 2011, 2021 and 2022 – is not actually surprising. The motherland of eventing is always good for a victory. The outcome of the individual classification was more of a surprise. To be fair one must say that with the Olympic Games in mind three German pairs – Michael Jung with Chipmunk, who were in the lead after the dressage and show jumping, the second runner-up in the interim results Christoph Wahler and the winner in 2022, Sandra Auffarth with Viamant du Matz – didn’t even try to hold their positions. Michael Jung didn’t even ride in the cross. Sandra Auffarth and Christoph Wahler were allowed to retire before finishing the course.

Julia Krajewski and the ten-year-old Holstein-bred Numero Uno son, Nickel, set off on track in the lead, after Michael Jung and Chipmunk had withdrawn. They delivered a solid round, picking up just 6.4 time faults and were able to hold on to first place. However, they were already the eighth pair to go, so Krajewski had to wait a good two hours before she knew the outcome with many strong pairs to follow. She was, however, satisfied, above all with Nickel: “I think he is definitely a horse that can win in Aachen. If not this year, another year,” stated Krajewski. She said Nickel was a “pal”, who “always tried to solve the tasks set.” Later she reported that she had walked past the Tower earlier in the day and took a photo of winners’ board and had thought, “how cool it would be to read your name on it again“. Because in 2018 she had ridden Michael Jung’s Chipmunk to victory at the Soers. That her dream came true so quickly did however come as a surprise. “We lost a shoe early on in the cross, the footing was good and the horse is balanced, but I noticed it here and there in the tighter turns, so I didn’t want to override it too much, I wanted to bring him home as safe as possible. I thought losing a few seconds here and there might have cost me the win,“ she said after her ride.

The tension rose as the number of run-outs increased during the morning and Krajewski and Böckmann kept creeping further and further forward in the ranking. And when Emily King with Valmy Biats, who had currently been lying in first place, made it home safe and sound, but had picked up 4.8 in time faults, and it became clear that Krajewski had won and Böckmann was second, there was no holding them back at the finish area of the SAP-Cups 2024. The two of them hugged each other and were congratulated by a queue of well-wishers, including Nickel’s owner, tears of joy running down his face.

Krajewski: “Winning in Aachen is, of course, always very, very special. It is almost like a championships. But there is so much between hoping to win and actually winning. I wasn’t predicted to win, which makes it all the better when it is a surprise. I still can’t really believe that it actually happened.”

Questioned as to how he managed to stay in the time, Calvin Böckmann, answered, “I think my horse and I have grown together incredibly over the last two and a half years. We were in America at the beginning of the year (at the CCI5*-L in Kentucky, note by the editor) for our first five* competition and I think that has simply bonded us even closer together. I trust him totally and he trusts me. That simply makes it possible to take the first distance and cut turns and that went in our favour.” At the time he didn’t even imagine he would come second in Aachen. And he still couldn’t quite believe: “I called all my friends and they said that is really crazy. It is the most special show in Germany. The atmosphere is incredible!”

Laura Collett, who came third, confirmed that: “Everything here is so special, the atmosphere, the crowds. We don’t get to jump in a stadium like this anywhere else in the world.” Her impression of the course: “It was a go-cart course, one obstacle followed the next. The courses in Aachen are always demanding.”

The man, who has been building the courses in Aachen for years, could have given himself another huge pat on the shoulder today. But because that is not his style, others did it for him. It was the last course that Rüdiger Schwarz has built and the organisers and riders expressed their immense gratitude. Head of Sport at CHIO Aachen, Birgit Rosenberg said: “Rüdiger Schwarz has done such a fantastic job here over the past years and it was always a pleasure to work with him. He always does his very best for the horses and his best for the sport.”

Julia Krajewski, who trained with Rüdiger Schwarz for many years, added: “When we walked the course, some people said the course is softer than usual. But it was built perfectly. We had “missed flags”, “MIMs” and run-outs. One had to ride smartly and use one’s head. Rüdiger has shaped how cross-country is ridden and how cross-country is built.”

Allianz and the CHIO Aachen extend their partnership

06.07.2024 10:45

The CHIO Aachen is the World Equestrian Festival….

The CHIO Aachen is the World Equestrian Festival. The place where the best riders in the world meet up every year and together with their unique horses impress millions of people worldwide. CHIO Aachen that means ten days of world-class sport, ten days full of top performances and emotions. When the stadiums are full and the top stars of the international equestrian sport ride into the largest arena in the world, sporting history is written over and over again. “Football has Wembley, tennis has Wimbledon, riding has Aachen.” This comparison has often been used to compare the significance of the CHIO Aachen for the equestrian sport.

Allianz, one of the world’s largest insurance companies, has been a partner of the CHIO Aachen since 2017. The two partners have now agreed to extend this partnership long-term. “The values of Allianz are also those of the CHIO Aachen – Excellence, Team Spirit and Passion. Our trusting cooperation over the past years and also in the future is proof that a successful partnership is based on mutual respect and joint visions,” stated Bernd Heinemann, who is among others also responsible for marketing within the Allianz group. “Our extending the agreement is a sign of our long-term association with and commitment for the equestrian sport. We look forward to continuing to experience the fascination of the equestrian sport together and to co-shaping the future of the CHIO Aachen.”

The reliable and intense ties between the CHIO Aachen and Allianz, which supports horse lovers as competent partners for essential themes such as horse operations and insurance against horse illnesses, liability policies for horse owners or business liability insurance policies, meanwhile extends far beyond the World Equestrian Festival. As an important supporter of the CHIO Aachen CAMPUS, the Allianz Germany enables first-class training, fitness and education offers all year round at the traditional showgrounds at the Aachen Soers and far beyond in the scope of the “CAMPUS on Tour” format. “This commitment speaks for the strength of the CHIO Aachen brand and for the concept of the CHIO Aachen CAMPUS that focuses on the sustainable promotion of the equestrian sport,” said Michael Mronz. “We very much look forward to being able to continue our cooperation with one of the most important partners of the sport worldwide in the future.”

Lady Gaga, Tom Cruise and the Statue of Liberty – fantastic quadrilles in the Prize of Handwerk!

05.07.2024 22:06

The USA, this year’s CHIO Aachen partner country…

The USA, this year’s CHIO Aachen partner country in 2024, certainly provided the participants of this year’s quadrille championships with artistic inspiration. But football was also a major theme!

Lovingly designed costumes, sophisticated choreographies and music that ranged from pop to country, through to football anthems – there was plenty on offer for those spectators, who had opted to watch the quadrille championship, the Prize of Handwerk, this evening instead of the EURO 24 football quarter final. The performances of the six teams were as equally top-class as the panel of judges: The championship judge, Katrina Wüst, Henning Lehrmann and Susanne Baarup were impressed by the creativity of the participants.

The panel of judges was already full of praise for the first quadrille by the District Association of Mettmann under the aegis of team leader, Elke Buddenberg. Vera Haug with Tenterhofs Hofmeister, Christina Konings with Milady N, Emely Schermuck with Glenn Flanell and Lisa Malin Schöning with Berney put in a fantastic performance. Katrina Wüst particularly accentuated the good rideability of the horses and the horse-friendly, diversified choreography, all of which was rewarded with a top score, 90 percent in total.

Mettmann held on to the lead until the end. But the last team to enter the Deutsche Bank Stadium were last year’s winners, District Association of Bergisch Land under their team leader, Norma Frerck, dressed as the Statue of Liberty. They danced to the song “Hit the Road Jack”, a rendition which would have delighted Ray Charles himself. She had every reason to hold her flame high, because her four riders put in an immaculate performance. Stefanie Haase with Chestnut K, Nicola Heynen with Livius, Heike Holtkamp with Sambuko and Ramona Müller with Dr. Mo, were total synchronous, the horses trusting and almost completely obedient. “Anyone, who manages to get a statue of liberty rocking, has achieved a great deal,” summed up an impressed Katrina Wüst, praising the lines of the choreography and above all the submissiveness of the horses, and awarded the incredible score of 93 percent and thus the second victory in success for the District Association of Bergisch Land in the Prize of Handwerk.

The District Association of Neuss, presented by Anja Mede, was pleased to come third with a score of 85 percent. The team from Neuss comprised of Janina Lichtenberg with Fahrenheit’s petite fleur, Anke Roeb with First Silvano, Sabrina Stocks with Sir Bernstein and Letizia Vogler with Fille d’amour.

The British team are the overnight leaders

05.07.2024 21:20

Friday is the day of the dressage and…

Friday is the day of the dressage and show jumping for the participants of the SAP-Cup, the Nations’ Cup of the Eventers at the CHIO Aachen. On the eve before tomorrow’s cross-country, the British team is heading the field.

Everything is still open in the SAP-Cup, both in the individual and team classifications. The British team are the overnight leaders in the Nations’ Cup, before tomorrow’s cross-country test. Emily King with Valmy Biats, Laura Collett with Dacapo, Izzy Taylor with SBH Big Wall and Kirsty Chabert with Classic VI have a total overnight score of 96.30 minus points.

The Australian team is close at their heels on a score of 100.10 minus points. Australia is represented by Kevin McNab with Miss Pepperpot, Christopher Burton with Clever Louis, Andrew Barnett with Go Tosca and Andrew Hoy with Cadet de Beliard.

The partner country, the USA, currently lies third (102.10). Hallie Coon with Cute Girl, Alyssa Phillips with Oskar, Elisabeth Halliday with Shanroe Cooley and James Alliston with Karma are waving the flag for the stars and stripes.

The German team presently holds sixth position after picking up a number of faults in the show jumping. Jérôme Robiné and Black Ice jumped clear and retained their dressage score of 33.30 minus points. Malin Hansen-Hotopp and Carlitos Quidditch K picked up eight faults in the ring (38.20), Michael Jung eight faults with Kilcandra Ocean Power (42.20) and Christoph Wahler had to add 12.8 faults to his and D’Accord’s dressage result (44.0). The overall interim result for the German team is thus 113.70 minus points.

Individual classification

Things look better for Germany in the individual classification. The gold medal winner from Tokyo, Julia Krajewski, leads with her future hope Nickel with 23.90 minus points. Christoph Wahler and Carjatan S, who together with Jung and Krajewski were part of the team that became team world champions in Pratoni del Vivaro in 2022, have 28 minus points, currently the second-best result. Emily King from Great Britain is in third place with Valmy Biats. After dressage and show jumping, three-time Olympic champion Michael Jung was actually leading the field with Chipmunk, but he will not be competing in the cross-country tomorrow.

The cross-country course at the Soers starts tomorrow at 9.55 am.

Charlotte Fry and Glamourdale in a class of their own in the Prize of Soers

05.07.2024 21:08

One must say, the World Champions from Great…

One must say, the World Champions from Great Britain, Charlotte Fry and Glamourdale, outclassed their fellow competitors in the Prize of Soers, the Grand Prix Spéciale of the CDI4* Tour, today.

After her triumph in the Grand Prix, Charlotte Fry and Glamourdale also succeeded in breaking the 80 percent mark in the Grand Prix Spéciale, the Prize of Soers. After scoring 80.107 percent, the two-time World Champion of Herning in 2022 left Isabell Werth with Quantaz (75.0) and Frederic Wandres with Duke of Britain (73.128) trailing behind her in second and third place respectively.

The performance of Fry and Glamourdale was full of wow effects – even if she did make some expensive mistakes in the pirouette to the right. First of all, Glamourdale did a flying change, then he lost his balance in the pirouette. But then Fry had everything under control again. The murmurs of the spectators until then and the compassionate groans when it happened, said it all: It was a performance that didn’t leave anyone cold. “To be honest, that was one of the best feelings that he has ever given me in a test,” beamed Charlotte “Lottie” Fry. She had a plausible explanation for the error: “I was so pleased with my pirouette to the left that I somehow forgot to ride the rest of the centre line. So, it was my own fault. But in the remaining parts of the test he was so focused on me, had so much go and so much fun in there. That was the best feeling I could have wished for before Paris.” Paris – here Fry was referring to the Olympic Games. Fry and Glamourdale have already been nominated for the British team.

Glamourdale has got the rest of the week off. Tomorrow, Charlotte Fry is competing in the Grand Prix Spéciale, the MEGGLE-Prize, with her second horse, Especial.

Birthday present for Lana-Pinou Baumgürtel in the Prize of Liselott and Klaus Rheinberger Foundation

05.07.2024 19:37

Could one imagine a nicer birthday than celebrating…

Could one imagine a nicer birthday than celebrating a victory at one’s debut in Aachen and that in your first year competing at advanced level? That dream came true for Lana-Pinou Baumgürtel today in the Prize of Liselott and Klaus Rheinberger Foundation.

In the Prize of Liselott and Klaus Rheinberger Foundation for Young Riders, first of all the riders perform the FEI individual test for the age group U21 and tomorrow a freestyle. Lana-Pinou Baumgürtel is not only making her debut appearance in Aachen, it is also her first season in the Young Riders age group. Whereby she has already won European Championship medals in all colours with her mare Emma. The pair have been together for a long time. “We bought Emma when she was young. She was a brood mare and I schooled her together with my trainer.” Obviously very successfully. The judges awarded the pair 70.823 percent, the best result of the day. And that on her 19th birthday. “I am delighted to be here and am so pleased to be able to compete here. And of course, it is absolutely amazing that we won,” said Lana-Pinou.

The only other pair that scored over 70 percent, were Kate Kyros and Intro K. Kyros is not very well-known in Germany. Which is hardly surprising because the 18-year-old comes from Australia and this is her first season in Europe. So, it was her first appearance in the Deutsche Bank Stadium as well. She was awarded 70.176 percent for her performance with her Apache son, Intro K.
Third place went to a well-known talented young rider from Denmark: the current U21 team European Champion, Sophia Ludvigsen (21), with Blue Hors Touch of Olympic L, on a score of 69.765 percent. It is Sophia’s last year as a Young Rider, but parallel to that she is also rides at Grand Prix level. It is also her premiere in Aachen. Her horse, Blue Hors Touch of Olympic L, is however familiar with the Deutsche Bank Stadium from previous performances with his trainer and former rider, Nanna Skodborg Merrald. The stallion was placed in the Small Tour last year, and before that won silver at the World Championship of the Young Horses with her.