The German champion Mario Stevens from Molbergen in Lower Saxony won the opening competition at the CHIO in the Aachen Soers after penalties and time.
The 39-year-old finished with the ten-year-old Oldenburg mare Botakara after a clear round due to the worse time behind the French winner Roger-Yves Bost with Bluemuch des Baleines and the Swiss Pius Schwizer with Bakatina de Beaufour.
All German top stars did the honors at the start in the largest equestrian stadium in the world, albeit mostly not with their top horses.
Daniel Deußer (Wiesbaden), last year’s winner of the Grand Prix of Aachen with Killer Queen, finished eighth with Maya, Christian Ahlmann (Marl) placed 13th with Mr. Lincoln, immediately behind Janne Friederike Meyer-Zimmermann (Hamburg) with Chaka Chaka and in front of the four-time Olympic champion Ludger Beerbaum (Riesenbeck) with Mila 64.
European Champion Andre Thieme (Plau am See) had saddled his championship horse Chakaria. He also had a clear lap, but was twelve seconds slower than the victorious Roger-Yves Bost.