The German dressage riders were in a class of their own this year in the Lambertz Nations’ Cup. Second place went to last year’s winners from Denmark, the partner country of the CHIO Aachen 2023, Great Britain, finished third.
On a total score of 468.285 points, the German quartet headed by the chef d’équipe, Klaus Röser and the national coach, Monica Theodorescu, won the Lambertz Nations’ Cup. Although they had a big lead, there was room for improvement in the performances of all pairs of the German team. One had particularly awaited the performance of Sönke Rothenberger and Fendi with anticipation, who were the first German pair to go. In the Grand Prix, the just nine-year-old Danish gelding by Franklin had still been pretty overwhelmed by the atmosphere in Aachen’s stadium, Rothenberger had explained. The result: Lots of mistake and a score under 70 percent. So the goal today was to improve the performance and the score. Mission accomplished. With a ride that focused on safety, the pair achieved a score of 74.830 percent. The team Olympic gold medallist of the year 2016 said: “I am very glad we were able to give him back the confidence he needed.“
Isabell Werth and Quantaz were the next to compete. The Quaterback son spooked in the one-tempis, which led to subsequent mistakes. Their end result: 75.851 percent and seventh place. Werth: “It was a shame because I was very pleased with the rest of the test. It was a harmonious competition.” Frederic Wandres had a short black out during his test with Bluetooth. He set off on the extended canter instead of the two-tempis and after noticing his mistake tried to step on the brake and do the tempis, which actually then went well. He also had a mistake in the one-tempis between the pirouettes. But there were also plenty of highlights, which were rewarded with a score of 76 percent. “I had a black-out and tried to make the best of it. I hope it never happens again.” The last pair to enter the arena for Germany was Jessica von Bredow-Werndl and TSF Dalera. And the Olympic gold medallists, European Champions and World Cup winners came up trumps: 81.021 percent. As such, the German team managed to turn the tables round and relegated last year’s winners, Denmark, represented this year by Nanna Skodborg Merrald with Blue Hors Zepter, Carina Cassøe Krüth with Heiline's Danciera, Andreas Helgstrand with Jovian and Lone Bang Zindorff with Thranegaardens Rostov, into second place. They were followed by the team from Great Britain, comprising of Charlotte Dujardin with Imhotep, Charlotte Fry with Everdale, Laura Tomlinson with DSP Rose of Bavaria and Annabella Pidgley with Vamos Amigos.
