Source:  News Release


Michael Jung was able to hold on to his lead. With a score of 38.20 points, the rider from Horb-Altheim (Baden Wuerttemberg) moved into first place with Weidezaunprofis River of Joy in the DHL-Prize Eventing Dressage at the CHIO Aachen 2010, World Equestrian Festival, and stayed there. Second place went to the British eventer Emily Baldwin on Drivetime ahead of the Belgian rider Karin Donckers with Gazelle de la Brasserie CH. Germany claimed fourth, fifth and sixth place: Dirk Schrade with Gadget de la Cere, Ingrid Klimke with FRH Butts Abraxxas and Andreas Dibowski with Euroridings Butts Leon, respectively. “Ultimately, it comes down to nuances in the exercises, it would be what you call “big-time whinging”, if we were to complain about the performances of our riders,” was the balance drawn by the national coach of the eventers, Hans Melzer. The decision will have fallen this evening in two of the three classification competitions, since the jumping begins at 5.30 pm in the main stadium.

For the “bush riders” the World Equestrian Festival is also a crucial step on the way to the World Equestrian Games in Kentucky. “Nine horses from our longlist for Kentucky are competing here,” the national coach Melzer reported. The Nations Cup team comprises of Dirk Schrade with the 14-year-old Holsteiner King Milford xx son, King Artus, Michael Jung with the Baden-Wuerttemberger-bred Rubicell son, Weidezaunprofi’s River of Joy (9), Ingrid Klimke with the 13-year-old Hanoverian, FRH Butts Abraxxas by Heraldik xx and Andreas Dibowski with the 13-year-old Heraldik xx son, Euroriding Butts Leon. “When you put a team together, you select the pairs that have given a constant good performance over the last months,” added Melzer. The winner of the dressage, Michael Jung, is successful in all disciplines and as well as 28 eventing victories he has also achieved top placings up to CCI**** level, won 13 advanced dressage competitions up to Intermediaire I and has been placed 58 times at advanced jumping level.

Tomorrow the eventers will be taking to the cross-country track, the heart and soul of this discipline. “The course is built like a Championship course. So faults can be picked up quickly in the form of run-outs for example. It is not going to be easy to remain within the time. But that is the charm of it because the riders have to risk taking the direct routes in order to remain within the optimum time,” said Melzer. “The first water jump is quite demanding and things could get tricky at the Sunken Road too. One has to really ride in balance and have one’s horse exactly on the aids, in order to put in a good round on the course here in Aachen,” stated last year’s winner, Frank Ostholt. He has set himself an ambitious goal: “I want to ride clear in the jumping and in the cross-country. My horse Mr. Medicott hasn’t competed much this year, so we have got to go for it.”