Leipzig: Show jumper David Will as the best German in sixth place
Leipzig (fn-press). On the last day of the World Cup finals in show jumping there was finally a German victory. David Will and C-Four won the last part of the final and took sixth place overall. The new overall World Cup winner is the reigning Vice European Champion from Switzerland, Martin Fuchs with Chaplin. Three other German couples made it into the top 20 at the end of the indoor season.
"It's hard to be happier. I'm overjoyed," said 34-year-old David Will after the final course. With his Holsteiner gelding C-Vier (by Cardento - Concorde), with whom he belonged to the German silver team at the European Championships in Riesenbeck in 2021, he remained flawless in both rounds of the last partial test. In addition, they completed the course as the fastest couple. “I think C-Four showed the best lap of all today. The fact that he gives his best performance on the last day, when he has to use his reserves a little, shows his quality and his character,” enthused Will. Already on Thursday, in the first stage of the World Cup final, the duo from Dagobertshausen in Hesse came through the course quickly and without making any mistakes, just a good two seconds slower than the winners Martin Fuchs and Chaplin. However, the next day, in the second stage, they made two mistakes. Overall, Will had ten penalty points in the overall ranking, Fuchs five. “In retrospect, it's annoying that things didn't quite go that way on Friday. That broke our necks a bit. But today the little bit of luck was on our side," said Will, who was not only enthusiastic about his horse but also about the atmosphere in the Leipzig exhibition halls: "First of all, you realize what you were missing. It's great fun and the spectators really get involved, you can feel the tension in the air.” According to the organizer, a total of 80,800 spectators streamed into the halls over the five days of the tournament and trade fair.
Not everyone liked the atmosphere the way David Will and C-Four did. For Marcus Ehning (Borken) and the 14-year-old Hanoverian mare Calanda (by Calido – Chasseur) the final test was over after two penalties on the first two jumps. Ehning, the 47-year-old veteran, gave up and analyzed it in a considered manner: "Unfortunately that was nothing. But I can't be mad at Calanda. I rode her here seven years ago and she doesn't like it at all. But that's not because of the tournament, but because of the atmosphere and the many screens. It's just not her thing. She was busy with everything but the jumps. There are horses that love it. Comme il faut, for example. Others just don't like it. That's why our horses are living creatures.” Originally, Ehning had planned to compete in Leipzig with his top horse, Stargold, but the stallion suffered a minor injury at the beginning of the week and dropped out. With Calanda he has now tried to make the best of the situation, said Ehning. "It didn't go as hoped. Still, it's a relief to see how well attended the tournament is, that people want to come back and want to go. That's a nice feeling."
The youngest German riders also put in a mixed performance. Gerrit Nieberg (28, Sendenhorst) and Westphalian Ben (by Sylvain – Quincy Jones) finished thirteenth in the overall World Cup with a total of 18 penalty points. Philipp Schulze Topphoff (23, Havixbeck) and the gray mare Concordess NRW (by Congress – Acrobat) collected 28 penalty points over the three partial tests and finished seventeenth. Christian Kukuk (32, Riesenbeck) also had a Westphalian with Checker (by Comme il faut - Come On). The two ended up with 31 penalty points and finished 19th. Just like David Will, the trio started at a World Cup final for the first time. All three were disappointed, although satisfied with the performance of their horses. National coach Otto Becker saw a conciliatory conclusion to the indoor highlight in front of the home crowd, at least for David Will: “His first and third special stage were outstanding. The second also started well, but then unfortunately he got two stupid mistakes. With a bit of luck he could have gone further up the field. That was also my hope, because the horse is very powerful in jumping. But it's not a request concert and the others were simply better." Overall, however, he had hoped for more, said the national coach: "We knew that we had four newcomers here, but everyone was in a good mood and had good success before. In the end only David is in the leading group. Our young people, especially Gerrit and Philipp, have certainly learned a lot here and will take a lot with them for the future. They will benefit from this. But if you want to get to the very front, you have to be more accurate at one point or another.”
The organizers of the World Cup final, which was held in Leipzig for the third time after 2002 and 2011, were completely satisfied. For the second time in the four disciplines of dressage, driving, jumping and vaulting. Tournament manager Volker Wulff drew a consistently positive conclusion: "We'd love to do it again in eleven years," he said with a laugh. "We had four great disciplines and saw great performances. 80,800 spectators over five days is a big number. It's true not what we had in 2011 but we have to consider the situation we are coming from. Some people are still unsure about the pandemic. But there were more spectators than expected. We are already looking forward to January 2023 when we again have the World Cup qualifications in three disciplines here in Leipzig. We are still discussing the fourth discipline.” jbc
