It wasn’t enough to win gold: defending champion Germany won the bronze medal in the team classification at the Dressage World Championships in Herning.
The winning streak of the German national dressage team is over. With four new couples, the team had to settle for bronze behind hosts Denmark and Great Britain at the World Championships in Herning on Sunday (07.08.2022).
For a long time, German victories seemed a matter of course in dressage, but they are not. After the last six gold medals in a row at major international events, the team is in a state of upheaval, so that the Germans, spoiled by success, were not considered favorites beforehand. However, second place was the minimum goal.
Laudrup-Dufour too strong for Wandres
Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour with Vamos Amigos was too strong as the last Danish starter in the Grand Prix. The German final rider Frederic Wandres from Hagen near Osnabrück with Duke of Britain could not top her result in his first World Championship ride. “Of course it’s also good for the sport if it’s exciting”said Isabell Werth.
“We cannot always assume that we will arrive with four couples who will get 80 percent plus”said Werth. This also applies to herself: After the career end of her top horses Bella Rose and Weihegold, Quantaz had to step in, who does not have the exceptional class and showed a good performance at the World Championships after problems in Aachen.
Klimke and Werndl laid the foundation stone
Germany started in Herning with a new team. None of the couples who won gold at the Olympic Games and the European Championships last year competed in Denmark. Above all, the recently unbeatable double Olympic champion Jessica von Bredow-Werndl with Dalera was missed. At the start on Saturday, Ingrid Klimke from Münster with Franziskus and Benjamin Werndl from Tuntenhausen with Famoso laid the foundation for the medal. Both achieved their best result so far in a Grand Prix.
Werndl played his first World Cup. The brother of Jessica von Bredow-Werndl, who had to forego the start at the World Championships because of her pregnancy, showed an almost flawless ride at his premiere. “Of course there are more important things in the world. There are problems in the world that I deal with, of course, and that helps me to see things a little more lightly at the moment.”he said.
11,000 fans in a converted football arena
Werndl commented on the atmosphere in the converted football arena with around 11,000 seats and the reaction of his horse: “It crackled, but then he switched to trust. It’s a special quality of his that he still listens.”
The two-time eventing Olympic champion Klimke rode for the first time in a dressage team at a championship and showed a good performance as the first team member in the saddle of Franziskus. “I’m totally happy”, the 54-year-old from Münster commented on her premiere. Klimke learned from her mistake at the CHIO in Aachen. If there is applause when riding in, you must Francis “first come to rest”. It only started after a short break: “And then I noticed that he’s breathing deeply now. The moment I started riding, I had the feeling that he was totally with me.”
The World Championship continues on Monday with the Grand Prix Special, the first of two individual decisions.