Marion Vignaud (FRA) and First Quality. ©FEI/M Guillamot
Host nation France retained team gold at the FEI Driving World Championship for Single Horses – but only just! In a thrilling contest, they totalled 298.59 to stay ahead of rivals Germany by only 1.32 for silver (299.91), who was only 0.84 ahead of Switzerland for bronze (300.75).
After two days of Dressage, when France’s Marion Vignaud and First Quality and Tony Ecalle with Kensington tied for second place on 44.25, the team had a clear lead over Germany of 11.65 and Switzerland of 16.24 going into Saturday’s Marathon. But it was a day of mixed fortunes for the French as team members gained penalties and saw their initial advantage shrink.
In contrast, Switzerland’s Mario Gandolfo and Favela – eventual individual winner – and Stefan Ulrich with Samito powered through the course to take first and third in the phase to rise to second and third places. Germany’s Ciara Schubert with Lassila and Anne Unzeitig with De Niro 29 also had fast drives to finish second and sixth and bring the top three teams even closer.
Although Sunday’s Cones proved to be decisive for the individual standings, it impacted the teams less as the top five stayed the same. French hopes for team glory were kept alive by Tony and Kensington, who produced a double clear, and Clement Deschamps with Brume de Chablis, who knocked one cone for three penalties. For Germany, Anne and Marie Tischer drove low penalty rounds to keep the pressure on. Maintaining their cool, with both team and individual podium places in their sights, Stefan and Mario also drove double clears.
As overnight leaders, and carrying the hopes of the home crowd, Marion and her 14-year-old KWPN gelding First Quality were last to enter a hushed arena. Until the very last oxer at number 20, it seemed that a first individual gold would be theirs, but in a split second it all changed. Just as the cheers started, a ball rolled in the final oxer, and they dropped to silver. It was a case of history repeating itself as the same happened at the last World Championship in the same arena in 2022. Despite the disappointment, the celebrations came as the French had done enough to seal their team victory, their second since the Championship started in 1998.
A past winner of FEI Driving World Championship for Young Horses, that late ball meant Mario won his first gold in this Championship by only 0.51 with a total of 149.25, as well as the first team bronze. For Marion, silver with 149.76 and team gold was still a great achievement. For Stefan Ulrich, who was on the silver medal winning team at the FEI Driving world Championship for Pair Horses a year ago in Le Pin, it was also a double podium finish with two bronzes and a total of 151.50.
In an interview after the Marathon, Mario paid tribute to his 10-year-old mare Favela. “We know the Marathon well here and have come for three years. It is well suited to Favela, and she loves it. She showed it here today because it was a very physical Marathon, but she recovered well. The course designer did his best for the horses, and it was beneficial for horse welfare because we had time to walk between the obstacles.
“I’m lucky to have a lot of people from my region who came here to see the World Championship. The Swiss team is good at the Cones, and although we are going to feel a bit of pressure, we are going to trust in our horses.”
It was a successful championship for Luxembourg who just missed out on podium places. Marie Schiltz with former Young Horse Champion, 16-year-old Frodo, is the number two ranked driver and finished fourth on 151.72. The team included her father Franz with San Remo Royal and Nicolas Candel with Festinov, and they were fourth on 315.56, ahead of a delighted British team who were fifth on 329.26.
Both Canadian and USA squads made the long journey to Europe for the event and enjoyed some successful results. Based in The Netherlands, Canada’s Kelly Bruder is the number one ranked driver and with her 16-year-old gelding Flip, was last to drive in the Dressage on Friday afternoon. They produced a mesmerising test to win on 40.65 and lead going into the Marathon, but they couldn’t retain their position and slipped away from medal places.
The American squad was impacted by a tip up in the second obstacle from one of their members and an elimination in the Cones. But their hopes were kept alive by Taylor Bradish and Katydid Duchess, who drove a great Marathon for fourth, and after the Cones, was the highest placed American to finish sixth.
Adding to the Swiss success, veteran driver and former World Four-in-Hand Champion Werner Ulrich, competing as an individual while his son was on the team, came fifth (154.73). Both were driving horses that had been on the silver medal winning Horse Pairs team a year ago.
Proving that age is no barrier in Driving, athletes ranged in age from 20 to 78, and the horses ranged in age from 8 to 19. In all, 79 athletes and 84 horses from 19 nations gathered in the stunning surroundings of the historic French national stud in Normandy, which is resplendent after a multi-million Euro investment. The Orne Quarry arena was the setting for the Dressage and Cones, while the beautiful Hautbois parkland, laid out in front of the Chateau at the heart of the equestrian complex, was the setting for the Marathon. Combining history with modern values, at the core of the ‘Versailles of the Horse’ is a sustainable approach to all aspects of the equestrian competition.
Rounding off the closing ceremony, Chair of the FEI Driving Committee Joaquin Medina (ESP), praised the organisers and venue for hosting a triumphant World Championship where, at all times, the welfare of the horses was put first.
by Sarah Dance