Philipp Weishaupt ensures a happy ending at the European Championships in Milan. He wins silver with his nine-year-old star Zineday.
Philipp Weishaupt and Steve Guerdat stood arm in arm on the podium in the San Siro facility, both gave a thumbs-up before showering with sparkling wine, beaming with joy. After that, Weishaupt celebrated his first European Championship medal with his teammates – and more importantly, with his favorite Zineday. With his silver medal, the 38-year-old show jumper ensured a conciliatory end to the European Championships in Milan.
On Sunday, Weishaupt was no longer impressed by the rollercoaster ride of the German team this week. As one of only five riders, he remained flawless in the first round and advanced to third place before the showdown of the top twelve. He thus had winning a medal in his own hands early on.
Weishaupt stays cool in the final
“Zineday showed himself from his best side again today,” said the rider before the showdown: “Now let’s see if we can manage another clear round and then we’ll see where we end up.”
This time Weishaupt showed no nerves in the final. Again he remained flawless and even got unexpected help. Ironically, Sweden’s Jens Fredricson, who rode perfectly into the final on Sunday, had a down in each of the two races and enabled the German to win the silver medal.
After Andre Thieme’s European title in 2021, it was the second individual medal for a German couple in a row. The Swiss Guerdat snatched the title, bronze went to Julien Epaillard from France.
Disappointment in the team competition
“Of course I’m more than happy with the result, the horse jumped exceptionally over five laps,” said the Vice European Champion afterwards. Only his “fucking annoying” mistake in the Nations Cup still bothered him.
With the team, Weishaupt was in a promising position and could not defy the resistance. The team of national coach Otto Becker rode into the final on Friday from first place, but after the loss of the important veteran Marcus Ehning the pressure was ultimately too great. One mistake too many finally cost bronze. Now Weishaupt and Zineday ensured the happy ending.
Also Christian Kukuk, with Mumbai the only single starter for Germany, put himself in wait with great performances this week. In the demanding course, however, disillusionment followed early on, two jumping errors and one time error meant 14th place for him. He missed the final.
“It’s very annoying and also a bit disappointing,” said the rider, who is also based in Riesenbeck: “Nevertheless, I’m not sticking my head in the sand. I’ve had a very consistent and safe week here with Mumbai. The feeling is really good. There there may still be a few tasks to come.”