Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates.
SPONSORS
PARTNERS
ECM Blogs
Whitaker wins FEI European Pony Championships
Wednesday, July 30th, 2008
FEI European Pony Championships: 24-27 July, Avenches (SUI)
Their winning streak began in 1997 and apart from a Dutch defiance in 2005, Great Britain has had the European Ponies Jumping title firmly gripped to their mantelpiece. This year proved to be no exception!
The competition was an exciting one indeed. After the first round three nations Denmark, Belgium and Ireland had put themselves in first place with a result of four faults only. Another three teams followed with a result of eight faults, Great Britain, The Netherlands and Germany.
When it came to round 2, the British showed off their nerves of steel – jumping brilliantly with just a time penalty to add to their initial 8 faults in Round 1 to take the lead. Among the team, George Whitaker, member of the renowned Whitaker family, riding the great piebald pony The Colour of Money, excelled by being one of the four double clears from the nations competition.
After two clears and one rider with a refusal on the three double jump and some time penalties, The Netherlands found themselves in the silver medal position with 15 faults. Denmark and Germany each sharing 16 faults had to face a jump off for the bronze medal. For Germany three clears by Anne-Elisa Schäfer, Laura Klaphake and again Maurice Tebbel proved convincing enough, and they were rewarded with team bronze. Denmark, whose debut in Round 1 had been promising, were relegated to fourth place.
A recurring name – Whitaker, George takes individual Jumping gold…
Finishing the Nations competition with two double clears left Britain’s George Whitaker, Holland’s Shanice Roozeboom, Germany’s Maurice Tebbel and Denmark’s Jessica Vinter Jenssen in top spot for the final individual competition. Indeed, they started the individual final in pole position, although time would show that no rider would be able to be all clear for the rest of the day. To err is human, and to err only very so slightly - one bar down and a time penalty in the second round – was what it took to declare George Whitaker winner of the FEI European Pony Jumping Championships.
It was just last week that his elder brother William defended the national colours to take team bronze and individual fourth place in Prague (CZE) at the FEI European Jumping Championships for Juniors Young Riders. It was now in the hands of Ian Whitakers younger son, John and Michael’s nephew - Geroge - to step up to the podium, earning both team and individual gold, another family accolade.
The winner of the silver medal is from a show jumping family as well, son of three times German master Rene Tebbel, Maurice.
“The course building was brilliant”, team chef of the British Katrina Moore said. “The first round of the Nations Cup was not so big and the competition was nicely built up this way. The individual final was technical. Especially the last line from the triple bar to the double proved to be difficult, resulting in some mistakes in the second of the double.”
Not any great jumper is a championship pony, Katrina Moore added. “Championship ponies have to have the stamina for at least four days! And not all great pony riders have the mental skills for championships too.”
Denmark’s Jessica Vinter Jenssen began with two double clears in the nations competition and with no medals to reward her on that front, she fought even harder when it came to the individual final, beating Britain’s Pippa Allen in a jump off for bronze with another clear round. For Pippa Allen this came as a bit of a disappointment as she had finished on forth place last year – however, with one year to go –perhaps her podium successes lay ahead of her…
Results - TEAM 1 GREAT BRITAIN 9 (Smith James, Mr Nice Guy 4, 1; Whitaker George, the colour of money, 0, 0; Stoker Emma, Peron III, 4 (12); Allen Pippa, Spot the Lady (4), 0) 2 NETHERLANDS 15 (Roozeboom Shanice, Sambo Lino, 0, 0; Van de Wetering Robin, Liberty’s Magic Ball, 8, 0; Roelofsen Fabienne, Fred (9), 7; Schuttert Frank, Golden Eye, 0, (8)) 3 GERMANY 16, after jump off 0 7 Schäfer Anna-Elisa. Mic Dundee the Gun, 4, (8) jump off 0; Löhden Josch (8), 4, jump of 4; Klaphake Laura, Jerome, 4, 4, jump off 0; Tebbel Maurice, Giovanni 0, 0, 4 DENMARK 16, after jump off 8 ( Meinert Ketterle Shannon, Anydale Ron, 0, 4 jump off 0; Sisseck Alexandra, Top Jezabel de l’Etape, 4, 8, jump off 8; Barker Rikke Belinda, Kilconell Sam, (12), (20) jump off 8; Vinter Jensen Jessica, Nikolina, 0, 0) 5. BELGIUM 20 6 IRELAND 21 7 FRANCE 34 8 NORWAY 68 9 SWEDEN in first round 28 10. ITALY in first round 30 11. POLAND in first round 36 12. FINLAND in first round 43 13. SWITZERLAND in first round 104
Results - INDIVIDUAL 1. GOLD Whitaker George, The colour of money (GBR) 5 2. SILVER Tebbel Maurice, Giovanni (GER) 9 3. BRONZE Vinter Jensen Jessica Nikolina DEN 12 after jump off 0 (34) 4. Pippa Allen, Spot the Lady (GBR) 12 after jump off 4 (32,9) 5. Klaphake Laura, Jerome (GER) 12 after jump off 4 (34,2) 6. Connell Shane, Murphy’s Flight (IRL) 16 6. Meinert Ketterle Shannon Anydale Ron (DEN) 16 6. Schäfer, Anna-Elisa, Mic Dundee the Gun (GER) 16 9. Sisseck Alexandra E, Top Jezabel de l’Etape (DEN) 18 9. Roozenboom Shanice, Sambo Lino (NED) 18 11. Lecomte Baptiste, Jimmersdor de Florys (FRA) 19 12. Burke Jessica, Bean Alaining (IRL) 20 13. Smith James, Mr Nice Guy (GBR) 21 14. Turkington Emily, Future Interest (IRL) 23 15. Werne Josephine, Classic Ways (SWE) 28 15. Löhden Josch, Bubbles Lollipop (GER) 28 15. Stampaert Chloe, Kleber du Hardrais (BEL) 28 15. Wellens Jef, Mississippi (BEL) 28
FEI European Pony Championships: 24-27 July, Avenches (SUI) Team Germany live up to all the expectations
If you thought that Great Britain with their 10 year winning spree (forget 2005) for the European Ponies Jumping title were onto something good – then Germany are on to something truly great having just won their 18th consecutive European Pony Dressage title (note that in 1989, gold went to FRG…).
From the onset, the very experienced team led by chef d’equipe Cornelia Endres were looking like a safe bet when they claimed places 1-4 in the preliminary test. Then, in the team test, held over two days, the German riders individually took the first three positions, leaving the fourth to Dutch Antoinette Riele aboard only six year old Golden Girl. Sönke Rothenberger, the brother of recent FEI European Junior champion Sanneke Rothenberger, was the highest placed German rider aboard the well known pony Deinhard B. Runner up was Katharina Weychert riding the stallion Dornik.
The challenge for the silver and bronze team medals was rather open. In the preliminary test both Belgian ponies as well Danish ponies were impressive, elegant and well ridden.
The Netherlands slotted in nicely after the German team, and were closely followed by Denmark with the Bronze, while the Belgian team had to settle for fourth. Denmark’s bronze coincides with last week’s bronze medal at the FEI European Dressage Championships for Juniors and Young Riders, where they also took bronze in both classes.
A unique Dressage Final
Despite early predictions and indications of a German whitewash, fates were quick to change and this year marked the first time in the history of the FEI European Pony Dressage Championships that the top five were of five different nationalities. Nonetheless, above and beyond this reality, Germany’s 13 year old Sönke Rothenberger riding Deinhard B proved that Germany could not be left out on the medal count and convincingly took gold. The 2005 European Pony Champion under Anna von Negri had also shown a lot of impulsion, safety and no weaknesses.
A wonderful pony with international qualities is one thing. It was already mentioned that the mental skills for championships as a rider, is another. It was as though a cloud had blown over the early hopefuls as the two German riders Carlotta Hassenbürger and Katharina Weychert that were placed immediately after Rothenberger in the two previous tests were taken by nerves. They were not able to show clear clean tests without mistakes and thus seriously dropped in the scores, and more importantly, out of medal positions. Now the delightful Dornik B, the 2007 European Pony Champion under Louise Luttgen, finished seventh. Dulcia, the 2006 European Pony Champion under Lydia Camp with her elegant, light footed gaits was in sixth.
The last rider to go was Dutch Antoinet te Riele, cousin of Sönke Rothenberger, as the mothers of Sönke and Antoinet are sisters. She did a great job and was in total control of the test and her nerves. After the first small mistake in a half pass, she decided to take even more risks and went for even nicer paces and great extensions. The more unique as her pony Golden Girl, born from the same mother as well know stallion Power and Paint, is only six years old.
Grandparents Adrie and Antoinet Gordijn from the Ijzeren Man Stables must have been very proud grandparents, as they celebrated individual gold and silver with two of their grandchildren, only one week after their eldest granddaughter Sanneke Rothenberger took both the team and individual gold medal at the FEI European Dressage Championships for Juniors and Young Riders in Portugal.
With a very small margin the bronze medal surprisingly was won by Swedish Elin Aspnas aboard Tim, it was a case of solid nerves at the right time. While Belgium’s Julie van Olst was left with the fourth place, all the more unlucky as the Belgian team also missed out on the bronze team medal by the merest of a margins.
It was a matter of details, whose significance can not be underestimated…
Results - TEAM 1. GERMANY 219,58 (Rothenberger, Sönke, Deinhard B 74,47%; Weychert, Katharina, Dornik B 72,88%; Hassenbürger, Carlotta, Dulcia 72,42% (Kienbaum, Florine, Going East 71,95%)) 2. THE NETHERLANDS 210,79 (Te Riele, Antoinette, Golden Girl 72,26%; 7. e.a. Jansen, Lotte, Oosteind´s Rocco 70,26%; Meulendijks Anne, Boticelli 68,263%; (Houtvast Danielle, Domingo, 68,00%)) 3. DENMARK 209,32 (Skodborg, Merrald Nanna, Centrum 71,05%; Moller, Christina, Casio 70,16%; Hougaard Sofie, Dornick-Son, 68,11%; (Seemann Sofie, Ferrari 68,11%)) 4. BELGIUM 209,05 5. SWEDEN 200,11 6. GREAT BRITAIN 187,74 7. ITALY 196,58 8. FRANCE 187,37 9. SPAIN 186,90 10. POLAND 181,95
FEI European Pony Championships: 24-27 July, Avenches (SUI)
Germany’s Eventing Success
German pony riders proved their determination last weekend at the wonderful Swiss venue of Avenches when they clenched not only team gold, but individual gold and bronze as well!
The German team had the best starting position when they were in the lead after the dressage and the cross country. No particular fence in the course caused more refusals or problems and only one fall without serious harm could be reported on the wonderful track.
For the teams the German squad felt the British contingent breathing down their backs and responded with two clear rounds in the final jumping phase and one with a time penalty, more than enough to clench gold.
For the individual medals the jumping final was even more exciting. Fifteen year old Nina Stegemann aboard Mr Hale was in the lead with only 0.2 advantage on the winner of dressage France’s Chloé Deschamps aboard Mon Nantano de Florys. Chloé Deschamps and Mon Nantano de Florys had been the winners this season of no less than six CCIP** in Jau Dignac, Pompadour, Macon-Laizé, Périgueux and Moulins. On each of these occasions she started by winning the dressage. Now in the final jumping phase she had one bar down. Whereas, Nina Stegemann was without faults until the very last fence, which left her with one bar down – the margin was close, but the title was secured -. Germany’s Nina Stegemann took gold, only just ahead of Chloé Deschamps. “With a tiny time penalty the individual gold medal would have gone!” exclaimed the German rider.
Last year she celebrated an individual bronze medal, this time it was both team and individual gold which hung around her neck. The bronze medal was won by German rider Pia Münkere aboard Biggi. She began in equel second place after the dressage phase with teammate Nina Stegemann behind Chloé Deschamps. In the cross country she added time penalties to be in third position. With a safe clear round in the final jumping the bronze medal was hers.
