Dressage-News

DONAUESCHINGEN, Germany, Aug. 18, 2018–Isabell Werth rode Weihegold OLD to the highest Grand Prix score of any of the Olympic superstar’s Big tour horses in a year to totally dominate the CDI4* Saturday while the performance by team mate Sönke Rothenberger and Cosmo left in doubt their selection for the World Equestrian Games in Tryon less than four weeks away.

Isabell and the world No. 1 Weihegold, 13-year-old Oldenburg mare, scored 82.652 per cent including four marks of 10 to win what is the last WEG selection event for Germany.

In a much-anticipated ride, Sönke and the 11-year-old KWPN gelding were awarded 76.196 per cent for third place in the horse’s return from an injury that kept the pair out of the show arena for two months. Difficulties in half-passes and the reinback dampened their results.

Fellow German Jessica von Bredow-Werndl on Zaire-E placed second on 76.413 per cent.

The dramatic turn of events presented the German team selectors with two major issues with the European dressage horses scheduled to fly in two weeks time to Tryon for the start on Sept. 12 of two days of Grand Prix to decide the world championship team medals:

–Which of Isabell’s three prospective mounts to name to the team–Weihegold with a record of 2016 Olympic team gold and individual silver, 2017 European Championships team, individual and freestyle gold and double World Cup champion; Emilio or Bella Rose that is Isabell’s personal favorite that came back to competition in July after an injury-caused absence of almost four years following team gold at the 2014 World Games.

–Whether to include Sönke and Cosmo, team mate with Isabell at the 2016 Rio Games, second to Isabell in all three Grand Prix classes at the 2017 Europeans and German champion, a national show, two months ago.

The top three prospects for the German team–widely considered to be facing a serious challenge from the United States at home–are Isabell on one of her three mounts; Helen Langehanenberg on Damsey FRH and Dorothee Schneider on Sammy Davis Jr. Sönke and Cosmo hoped to fill the fourth spot, as does Jessica von Bredow-Werndl with one of her three Grand Prix horses–Zaire-E, TSF Dalera BB or Unee BB

The four marks of 10 for Isabell, 49 years old, and Weihegold were for piaffe and passage including two for passage-piaffe-passage transitions on the final centerline.

The previous highest Grand Prix score for Isabell on either Bella Rose, Don Johnson FRH, Emilio or Weihegold–was 83.743 per cent on Weihegold at the 2017 European Championships.

There, the pair won the Freestyle with their first ever score above 90 per cent, that was also achieved by Sönke and Cosmo, to become only the fourth and fifth riders in the world to attain that mark for a musical performance.

Sönke Rothenberger, 23 years old, and Cosmo were ranked as high as No. 2 in the world but a scant competition record in the past year have dropped the pair to 97th. This was their first competition since the German Championships in June and the first CDI since April, the only international event for the pair since the Europeans in August, 2017.

At the 2016 Olympics, Isabell added to her Olympic medal count with team gold and individual silver for a career total of 10 so far, more than any equestrian in more than a century of horse sports at the Games.

Results:

CDI4* Grand Prix

Judges-E: Adriaan F. Hamoen-NED H: Alice Schwab-AUT C: Gustaf Svalling-SWE M: Kerstin Holthaus-GER B: Dietrich Plewa-GER