The first round of the team final and the second individual qualifier at the FEI World Championships in Aachen have come to an end. Scott Brash currently leads the individual standings with Hello Mango (Untouchable) on just 0.80 penalty points. In the team competition, Germany leads the way on 3.48 penalty points, with the ten best-placed nations advancing to tomorrow’s second round.
The top ten teams heading into tomorrow are Germany, the United States, Belgium, Italy, Great Britain, France, Sweden, Switzerland, Denmark and Ireland.
Individually, Sophie Hinners follows Brash in second with Iron Dames Singclair (Singular LS la Silla) on 0.84 penalty points. Steve Guerdat with Dynamix de Belheme (Snaike de Blondel) and Daniel Deusser with Otello de Guldenboom (Tobago Z) share third place on 0.86.
Ben Maher with Point Break (Action-Breaker) and Nicola Philippaerts with Katanga v/h Dingeshof (Cardento) share fifth place on 1.01 penalty points.
Top five individually
- Scott Brash – Hello Mango – 0.80
- Sophie Hinners – Iron Dames Singclair – 0.84
- Steve Guerdat – Dynamix de Belheme – 0.86
- Daniel Deusser – Otello de Guldenboom – 0.86
- Ben Maher – Point Break – 1.01
- Nicola Philippaerts – Katanga v/h Dingeshof – 1.01
With the team final continuing tomorrow and the individual standings also extremely close, the battle in Aachen is wide open.
Scott Brash, who is currently leading the individual standings, was particularly pleased with his round aboard Hello Mango. “Mango jumped incredibly. She felt a little more tense in the warm-up today. There was a bit more atmosphere, but once she went into the ring, she was absolutely fantastic.”
At the same time, Brash knows the competition is far from over. “It’s amazing, but I’m under no illusions. There’s still a long way to go, there’s a lot of jumping still to come, and there are some big tests ahead. We’ll take it one day at a time. I’m super happy with how things are going, and we’ll look ahead to the rest of the week.”
On the high number of clear rounds, Brash said: “There are so many clears, but the course is big. The distances are very demanding and there are no easy lines anymore. There’s a big first jump, but the horses are jumping very well in this arena. I think it shows the level we have here.”
