Dressage-News

NEUMÜNSTER, Germany, Feb. 19, 2017–Isabell Werth and Don Johnson FRH won the World Cup Grand Prix Freestyle Sunday to give the world’s top rider an unassailable lead heading to the Final in Omaha at the end of March.

Isabell, a two-time winner of the only annual world championship, and the 16-year-old Hanoverian gelding scored 82.455 per cent for the rider’s fourth win in four starts in the Western European League and a maximum of 80 points.

Isabell won three of the qualifiers for Omaha on Weihegold OLD, the 12-year-old Oldenburg mare she rode for team gold and individual silver at last summer’s Olympics to become the winner of 10 Olympic medals, the most of any equestrian in Games history.

Helen Langehanenberg and Damsey placed second on a personal best score of 79.150 per cent in the pair’s first World Cup event this winter. Helen won the title on her 2012 Olympic mount Damon Hill in 2013.

Madeleine Witte-Vrees of the Netherlands on Cennin was third and became the highest placed Dutch rider in Western Europe with two more events to go before the final in Omaha Mar. 27-April 2.

Australia’s Kristy Oatley on Du Soleil with a sixth place finish on 74.015 per cent moved into second place in the standings on 55 points.

Great Britain’s Carl Hester who did not compete here on Nip Tuck, his Olympic silver medal horse, and Switzerland’s Marcela Krinke Susmelj were one point further back but assured of being among the nine places allocated to Western Europe in the final.

Isabell has competed Don Johnson at Big Tour for six years including the 2013 World Cup Final in Gothenburg, Sweden and the European Championships in both 2013 and 2015.

She is scheduled to ride Emilio, 11-year-old Westfalen gelding, at the World Cup event in Gothenburg next weekend with ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands the last of the Western European qualifiers set for Mar. 9-12.

“It’s great to have so many horses in good form at the same time and I’m delighted with Johnny today,” said Isabell.

“He’s like a good red wine, he keeps getting better.”

Hans Peter Minderhoud of the Netherlands is the title defender and has sufficient starts this year to automatically qualify for Omaha.

The top 10 standings after Neumünster, the seventh of nine WEL qualifiers, are: 1. Isabell Werth of Germany 80 points; 2. Kristy Oatley of Australia 55; 3T. Carl Hester of Great Britain 54; 3T. Marcela Krinke Susmelj of Switzerland 54; 5. Judy Reynolds of Ireland 52; 6. Madeleine Witte-Vrees of the Netherlands 51; 7. Fabienne Lütkemeier of Germany 41; 8. Inna Logutenkova of Ukraine 40; 9. Jessica von Bredow-Werndl of Germany 38, and 10. Severo Jesus Jurado Lopez of Spain 37.

Results:

CDI-W Grand Prix Freestyle