Dressage Grand Prix Gold for Isabell Werth

Source :  WEG 2006 Aachen

The crowd held their breath: The Dutch rider Anky van Grunsven and her 12-year-old Hanoverian gelding, Salinero, gave an excellent, faultless performance and with a score of 77.8 percent secured their standing as one of the top favourites for the gold medal. Minutes later the next rider, Isabell Werth, risked everything with her 12-year-old Hanoverian gelding, Satchmo, and presented the best Spéciale in her career. The 37-year-old once again demonstrated nerves of steel and the judges rewarded her courageous and completely accurate ride with 79.48 percent. Andreas Helgstrand secured the bronze medal on the nine-year-old Danish mare, Blue Hors Matine, the youngest horse in this competition.

Isabell Werth & Satchmo, winners of the individual Gold Photo © Kit Houghton/FEI

"It was predestination." Team World Champion Isabelle Werth couldn't believe what had happened on this day. It was actually planned that the reliable Hanoverian gelding Warum Nicht should represent the team at the World Championships. However, after the gelding had to be withdrawn at the last minute, Satchmo took his place in the team. "I know that Satchmo is the best horse that I have ever had, but I still never thought that I would take the World Championship title with him." Without the pressure of having to achieve a good result for the team, she followed her own concept - the perfect combination of a large portion of risk united with ease and elegance.

Salinero's faultless performance was also hallmarked by elegance. "He was very good, I am content," said Anky van Grunsven. But the gelding had not forgotten that something frightened him during the prize-giving ceremony of the Grand Prix two days previously, when he stormed out of the stadium. He had still been rather nervous during training in the morning, but fortunately he had regained his concentration in the afternoon and was calm again, explained the 38-year-old wife of the Dutch National Coach, Sjef Jansen.

After winning the team classification, the Grand Prix, the Dutch rider's grey mare Matine was hailed a top candidate for a medal. The 28-year-old Andreas Helgstrand from Billund, Denmark, who came ninth at the Olympic Games in Athens, already celebrated several big victories with Matine this summer, winning the dressage tests of the CDI in Wiesbaden against strong competition. Whether the mare will also be able to claim a medal in the freestyle competition is the exciting question Helgstand and his trainer Rudolf Zeilinger are asking themselves. Zeilinger commented: "The mare has first-class nerves and potential, she is also in fantastic condition, but we don't know how she is going to react to the atmosphere in the floodlit stadium. The mare hasn't experienced a World Cup season yet, so she is not familiar with the dark, huge stands and glaring spotlights.

The three medal winners are profiting from the amendments to the dressage regulations that came into effect at the beginning of this year. In contrast to the previous years, two individual gold medals will be awarded at this year's FEI World Equestrian Games - one in the classic tour, the Grand Prix Spéciale and one in the Freestyle tour. Tomorrow on Saturday, the best 15 riders from the Grand Prix Spéciale will be given a further opportunity to compete for gold, silver and bronze in the freestyle competition.