| Christian and Checker finish seventh in the Grand Prix of Aachen
Last week, the equestrian world turned its eyes to Aachen for the World Equestrian Festival – from July 1 to 6, the world’s best showjumpers gathered at the Aachen Soers. Representing Team Beerbaum, Christian competed with Checker, Chageorge, Cepano Baloubet, and DSP Oganero P, and the first placing did not take long to arrive. On Tuesday, DSP Oganero P delivered a confident performance and secured 5th place in the Sparkassen Youngster Cup with a lightning-fast second phase. He followed up with another 5th place in the second round of the Youngster Cup on Thursday. The promising youngster, who is available to our breeders this year via fresh semen, remained unimpressed by the atmosphere in Saturday’s final. He confidently galloped to a clear round and qualified for the jump-off. With the fastest time among the pairs with one fault, the two finished in 11th place, rounding off an impressive week for our young horse.
On Thursday evening, the traditional Mercedes-Benz Nations Cup took place in front of approximately 40,000 spectators and Christian and Cepano Baloubet were part of the German team. In the first round, they showed their full ability and delivered a solid clear round for the team. In the second round, however, luck was not on our side. A small misunderstanding between Christian and Cepano Baloubet resulted in a refusal and, in the end, 13 penalty points for the German team. Despite two clear rounds from Jana Wargers with Dorette and a faultless ride from Hans-Dieter Dreher with Elysium in the second round, it was just not enough for a podium finish. The German team, led by Chef d'Équipe Otto Becker, finished fourth in the Nations Cup this year.
The next highlight followed on Friday – the Prize of North Rhine-Westphalia. Fifty combinations tackled the challenging course, and Christian and Chageorge opened the competition as the first to go. The pair set an unbeatable time but had to accept a light fault at the imposing water jump. Only two pairs managed to complete the course faultlessly and decided the win in a jump-off. Thanks to their lightning-fast time, Christian and Chageorge brought home third place to Riesenbeck.
For Sunday afternoon’s Grand Prix of Aachen, Christian saddled his Olympic partner Checker. As always, the two delivered a harmonious and faultless first round. In the second round, featuring the top 18 from the first round, the successful duo remained clear and earned their place in the decisive jump-off, for which 11 of the 18 pairs qualified. Tight turns and full risk were the strategy for the jump-off, but an unfortunate fault at the first element of the combination prevented a higher placing. In the end, it was seventh place in the Grand Prix of Aachen – a successful conclusion to a great week for Christian.
Successful Aachen Debut for Ciaran
Ciaran also competed in Aachen last week, marking the young Irish rider’s first appearance at the CHIO Aachen as part of Team Beerbaum. On Friday, he entered the NetAachen Prize for young riders with 10-year-old Serendepety and immediately produced a clear round. In the second young rider competition on Sunday, the pair once again showed their class, qualifying for the jump-off. There, they were again fast and clear, bringing home 4th place to Riesenbeck.
