Andre Thieme crowned himself European champion today in front of his German home crowd in Riesenbeck. Afterwards, he was mainly his own funny self: "I knew I could have one fault, but when I got that mistake at obstacle five, I thought 'oh no, the road is still very long now'," said the brand new European champion.
"It is of course great to win this championship in front of a German audience," he continued. "I felt that everyone sympathised with me. You could really feel that the crowd was behind me and the German team. So when I got that error, I think I was at least as nervous as the crowd. I really thought 'oh god, oh god'. However, I managed to keep my composure and that was the deciding factor. I knew my horse was very special, of course, but now she is really starting to prove it with prize money and titles (laughs). She has done it and I am grateful for that.
"It is a pity that I still have to drive several hours home but that also means that my team has time to prepare a 'surprise'," he laughs.
"It is of course great to win this championship in front of a German audience," he continued. "I felt that everyone sympathised with me. You could really feel that the crowd was behind me and the German team. So when I got that error, I think I was at least as nervous as the crowd. I really thought 'oh god, oh god'. However, I managed to keep my composure and that was the deciding factor. I knew my horse was very special, of course, but now she is really starting to prove it with prize money and titles (laughs). She has done it and I am grateful for that.
"It is a pity that I still have to drive several hours home but that also means that my team has time to prepare a 'surprise'," he laughs.