Otto Becker is chef d'équipe of one of the most successful teams in Nations Cup history. As head of the German team, he has plenty of choice from top riders such as Daniel Deusser, Christian Ahlmann, Marcus Ehning, ... Yet he also wants to give the youth an opportunity to prove themselves: "Our youth is the future. It would be foolish not to give them a chance"
"After the Hong Kong Olympics, the Germans asked me to join their team as chef d'équipe. I saw this as the ideal opportunity to turn my passion into my profession, so I took this opportunity with both hands. I was no longer active in the sport myself and in this way I could still contribute to the German showjumping sport ", says Otto Becker. "This job does bring a certain amount of pressure. Germans are generally very critical, so the pressure to perform consistently does exist. In addition, equestrianism has experienced tremendous globalization, leading several riders and nations stepping up to the next level, so it is becoming increasingly difficult to compete ".
"Last year I took the risk of sending a relatively young team to the European Championship, but I am glad I made this decision. They may be young and inexperienced, but my riders proved what they were capable of at the time. In this way they have had the opportunity to learn a lot, because ultimately the future belongs to the youth, they will represent our sport for the coming decades. I'm thinking about riders such as Maurice Tebbel and Laura Klaphake, who have their regular coaches and parents with them and I notice that they have developed a system that works well for them, so I try not to "bother" too much. Collaboration with these riders was previously done in a cautious way, but now we work well together very well".
"I also think it is important that a national team is a close-knit team. We are lucky to have many good older riders like Ehning who assist the younger riders with advice and assistance. The team also spends a lot of time together at various competitions so that of course also benefits the group spirit. I also notice that when younger riders join the team for the first time, they are initially a bit overwhelmed by the older riders, but that feeling quickly disappears when they see that the older riders riders are willing to help them. So I think the German team is a well-oiled machine, a team that would go through fire for each other. "
Source: Jumpinside
