Tag Archives: Ros Canter

British Breeze to Golden Glory Once Again

Team Great Britain. (FEI/Libby Law)

It was all about the British once more when the FEI Eventing European Championship 2023 drew to a close at Haras du Pin, France. At the last edition in Avenches (SUI) two years ago, they swept all before them, and again now they took not only the team title, but team-members Ros Canter (Lordships Graffalo) and Kitty King (Vendredi Biats) clinched individual gold and silver ahead of Germany’s Sandra Auffarth in bronze.

The team ranking established after a thrilling cross-country phase remained the same, with Germany standing on the second step of the podium ahead of the hosts from France during the medal ceremony.

In the final analysis, the British score of 103.9 left them well clear of their German rivals, who completed with 131.2, while the French took bronze on a score of 134.2. German chances had been compromised by the loss of their star performer Michael Jung, who was eliminated for an unlucky fall just a few fences from home with Fischerchipmunk FRH.

Team Ireland finished fourth, with Switzerland, Sweden, Belgium, and The Netherlands completing the line-up. A total of 56 combinations started in dressage on Thursday, but that was narrowed down to just 37 in the deciding jumping phase. For Belgium and The Netherlands, there was plenty to celebrate as they picked up the two qualifying spots on offer for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

This was Great Britain’s 24th team and 20th individual title in the 70-year history of this Championship.

Pressure

The French team kept the pressure on Germany with clear rounds from both Karim Florent Laghouag (Triton Fontaine) and Nicolas Touzaint (Absolut Gold HDC), but Stephane Landois (Ride for Thais Chaman D) lost his grip on overnight individual fourth place with a fence down, and Gaspard Maksud (Zaragoza) also left one on the floor. With the German team reduced to just three, they had plenty to contend with, but while Malin Hansen-Hotopp (Carlitos Quidditch K) had a fence error and some additional time faults, both Christopher Wahler (Carjatan S) and Sandra Auffarth (Viamant du Matz) were foot-perfect over the track designed by Quentin Perney, which consisted of 12 fences and 15 jumping efforts.

Lying sixth in the individual rankings at the start of the day, that clear would promote Wahler to individual fourth place behind team-mate Auffarth, and ahead of the two French clear-round jumpers, Touzaint, who slotted into fifth, and Landois, who finished sixth.

Britain’s Kitty King had no room for a fence error if she was to hold Auffarth at bay for the silver medal as she went into the ring to jump the penultimate round of this Championship, but when she added only 1.2 time faults to her scoreline, she was secure for the second step of the individual podium. Then all eyes turned to Canter and Lordships Graffalo, the horse she calls Walter.

When dressage leader Jung went out of contention, she rose to pole position and she had more than two fences in hand as she set off. The first element of the double at fence four hit the floor, but she still completed with a 6.7 fault advantage over King to take the individual honours and to put the icing on the British team cake.

Expectation

Talking about how she handled the weight of expectation, Canter said, “I had to keep in my own bubble a little bit, remind myself who I’m sat on and just try and do the best job I could in that situation.”

The team success means even more to her than her individual achievement. “For me the team always comes first, it’s what I do it for, it’s what I dream of doing!

“For me the team always comes first; it’s what I do it for; it’s what I dream of doing. Our family are sporty all-rounders and it’s always been about riding for Great Britain. After (winning) Badminton, that was such a massive box ticked for me and I didn’t think it could get much better! I’ve got Walter to thank for it all; he’s just unbelievable!” added the 37-year-old, who took team and individual gold at the world championship in 2018 and European team Gold in both 2017 and 2021.

Like Canter, King was on the winning British side at the 2021 European Championship, but she said she wasn’t expecting to feature so prominently this time around.

“I thought I’d be coming out here just to put a score on the board and be a good pathfinder, and that it would be up to the rest with their amazing horses. So to come home with a medal of any colour is a huge honour and achievement and I’m very, very proud of my horse! I’m delighted with silver – and Ros definitely deserves the gold!” she pointed out.

Germany’s Auffarth was quite happy with her individual bronze, but even happier that her team managed to take silver after losing their star player in Michael Jung. She said her chestnut gelding Viamant was a bit fired up by the enthusiastic crowd, but it also made him jump even better. “I’m very proud of him, and proud of my team and all the work we put in at our training camps.”

Favourites

At the post-competition press conference, her Chef d’Equipe, Jens Adolphsen, said, “After Tokyo, everyone said the Brits are favourites for the next 50 years! But then it changed (when the German team won gold at the last year’s world championship) and now I hope it changes again!”

Paris 2024 is now in full focus for all the nations, and the relief for Belgium and The Netherlands with confirmation of their participation was enormous. It was particularly emotional for Dutch team member and coach, Andrew Heffernan.

“I had 20 years of competing and then I got the job as coach, because we needed to qualify for Paris, and with the support of all my riders, I came out of retirement and rode on the team. And thank God it has worked out – now I’m going straight back into retirement because the pressure this week from my perspective doing both jobs has been huge. This was what we needed to achieve, and we’ve done it!” he said, attempting to control an ocean of happy tears.

There was a question about gender balance in equestrian sport from the floor of the press conference, and FEI President and IOC member Ingmar de Vos, who had earlier thanked the show organisers, officials, and volunteers for making this FEI Eventing European Championship such a special occasion, pointed out that “we are the absolute champions of gender diversity because everyone has a chance in our sport!”

Indeed, everyone has a chance, but they’ll all be out to beat the British next summer, so when Ros Canter was asked if she expects to be the Paris 2024 Olympic champion, she replied, “The simple answer is: I hope so!”

For now, she can bask in the light of European golden glory.

Results

by Louise Parkes

press@fei.org
www.fei.org

Brits Are Bossing It after Brilliant Cross-Country Day

Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo (FEI/Libby Law)

Team Great Britain’s mission to take their 24th team and 20th individual title is back on track after a thrilling cross-country day at the FEI Eventing European Championship 2023 at Haras du Pin in France.

They were already on top of the team leaderboard, but it was German star, Michael Jung, who was heading the individual standings at the end of the dressage phase.

On a roller-coaster of an afternoon, Jung was eliminated for an unlucky fall at the drop before the final water complex, and going into the closing jumping phase it is Britain’s Ros Canter and the horse with which she won Badminton 2023, Lordships Graffalo, who head the individual standings.

Storming

The pair was in a league of their own when storming around the recalibrated course with nine seconds to spare on a day when not one other combination managed to get home within the optimum time of 8 minutes 18 seconds. Lying second when the actions will resume is Canter’s team-mate Kitty King (Vendredi Biats), while Germany’s Sandra Auffarth (Viamant du Matz) is in third and Frenchman Stephane Landois (Ride for Thais Chaman Dumontceau) is in fourth place.

There were many changes to the individual leaderboard, but none as dramatic as that of Ireland’s Sarah Ennis who, lying 54th of the 56 competitors after dressage, has rocketed up to fifth with Grantstown Jackson going into the final day. Team silver medallist at the FEI World Equestrian Games in 2018, she had the unenviable task of going first on the cross-country track and, coming home in 8 minutes 24 seconds, gave the impression that the challenge was not as difficult as had been anticipated. As it turned out, on a day when three horse-and-rider combinations retired and eight were eliminated, she and her Irish-bred gelding were one of the very best when producing the second-fastest ride in this phase.

Decision

After a night of torrential rain, the Ground Jury made an early decision to shorten the track, dress the take-off areas of some fences, and to delay the start, originally scheduled for mid-day, to 14.00 hours. The loop of fences from 12 to 15 was removed, so horses went directly from the log-pile at eleven to the water complex at 17ab and 18, and there was an option at fence five.

It wasn’t just Pierre Le Goupil’s beautifully designed course that asked questions. The going, already challenged by over 250mm of rain in the last few weeks and further softened by the overnight downpour, tested strength and stamina.

British pathfinder King set her team up nicely when collecting just 3.6 time penalties, but there was a nervous moment when reigning world champions Yasmin Ingham and Banzai de Loir had a run-out at the last element of the coffin combination at fence 22. When Laura Collett’s line through the corner at fence 20 with London 52 went under review, there was further cause for concern. But in the end the pair were awarded just 9.2 time penalties and even before Canter set off, Team GB were already assured of the lead going into the closing day.

Exhibition

Canter gave an exhibition of cross-country riding, recovering quickly from a blip at fence two where a number of others also had an uneasy moment, to return with a fresh horse and a big smile.

“He’s very efficient, a very careful horse; he never balloons, he never goes green, so he always lands travelling which is very good. He’s extremely polite which is unusual – to have a horse that travels at his speed that is so responsive. So when he gallops, he gallops low, but when you sit up, he bunches up and his head comes up. It’s the best of both worlds. There aren’t many that gallop low and then don’t want to stay down there. Not many that have their heads up to jump but then want to gallop low. I think that’s where he’s just amazing. I’ve never sat on a horse like him that travels so efficiently and that is so rideable and so brave.

“He measures every jump; he reads every jump and seems to know how much he has to give everything. He makes my job easy because, hand on heart, I’m not normally the fastest rider!” said Canter afterwards.

Dashed

Michael Jung’s freak fall late on the track dashed German chances of a closer contest going into the final day. His normally sure-footed gelding Fischerchipmunk FRH just didn’t seem to get his landing gear down in time and knuckled over on the slope at fence 24 to leave his rider with no chance of staying in the saddle.

Jung was stoic, however. “It was just unlucky; there was nothing anyone could do about it,” he said afterwards. That’s horse sport, as the double Olympic champion knows only too well.

Auffarth, Christoph Wahler (Carjatan S), and Malin Hansen-Hotopp (Carlitos Quidditch K) are left to fly the German flag, but there is a 27.3 penalty gap between them and the leading British, while the French foursome of Landois, Gaspard Maksud (Zaragoza), Nicolas Touzaint (Absolut Gold HDC), and Karim Florent Laghouag (Triton Fontaine) are only 0.2 penalty points behind in bronze medal position. Team Ireland lies fourth (136.4), the Swiss are in fifth (147.9), Belgium is in sixth place (166.2), Sweden in seventh (194.8), and The Netherlands lies eighth (212.2).

Both Team Italy and Team Austria dropped out of contention, so the battle for the two Olympic qualifying spots is already over and it is the Belgians and Dutch who are on their way to Paris 2024.

Result after Cross-Country

by Louise Parkes

press@fei.org
www.fei.org

World Champion Ros Canter Debuts as Eventing World Number One

Ros Canter (GBR) riding Allstar B secured double gold at the FEI World Equestrian Games™ Tryon 2018. (FEI/Christophe Taniere)

Lausanne (SUI), 1 May 2019 – Eventing world champion Ros Canter (GBR) has overtaken compatriot Oliver Townend to claim the number one spot in the Eventing World Rankings for the first time, ending Townend’s 12-month reign at the top of the leaderboard.

Canter (33) is the first female athlete to top the Eventing rankings since fellow Briton Mary King held the world number one slot back in 2011. Over the past seven years the World Rankings have been dominated by four men – Andrew Nicholson (NZL), William Fox-Pitt (GBR), Michael Jung (GER), and Oliver Townend (GBR).

Last year, Canter with her mount Allstar B clinched victory at the FEI World Equestrian Games™ Tryon 2018 and treated fans to one of the most thrilling performances in sport to secure team and individual gold medal for Great Britain.

In 2017, Ros Canter was also part of the gold medal winning team at the FEI European Eventing Championships in Strzegom (POL).

“It is very exciting for me as not many people can say they’ve been world number one,” Ros Canter said following the release of the latest FEI World Eventing Rankings.

“I didn’t think it would ever happen, in the main because I’ve not had a string of horses at the top level. However, we have been improving. We have gone from fairly average results to very competitive in recent years.”

Expecting her first child in July this year, Ros will not be competing at the Longines FEI European Eventing Championships this summer in Luhmühlen (GER); however, her sights are set on the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, where she hopes to be a strong contender.

View full FEI World Eventing Rankings here.

Ros Canter – early career

Ros Canter has been immersed in equestrian sport since her childhood, riding with her parents and her two sisters on her family’s farm in Hallington, England, where she is now based.

Silver Curtis was Ros’ first horse and key to her early career success, setting her on the Eventing path, and leading her to being shortlisted for the British Junior team. She represented Great Britain in the World University Equestrian Championships in Algiers, Algeria in 2008, winning a silver medal.

Ros competed at the World Championships in Le Lion d’Angers (FRA) in 2011, where she scored individual silver. She also took part in 2016 although did not make it on the podium. In 2016, Ros was selected as part of the Ambition Programme, for a behind the scenes look at the Rio Olympic Games.

Awarded as the Best British rider at the 2017 Badminton Horse Trials in England, she was honoured to receive the prized Butler Bowl. Capping off an incredible 2018 season, Ros was named Professional Rider of the Year at the Horse & Hound Magazine Awards.

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