The first winner of the Oldenburg Championships was crowned in Höven

The first sash at the 2026 Oldenburg Championships in Höven was awarded to the three-year-old fillies and geldings; the colts will compete on Sunday. For the first time, a championship was decided in a single class without a preliminary qualifying round. This is due to changes at the Bundeschampionat, where, starting this year, three-year-olds will also compete in only one class. However, the Oldenburg Championships will continue to include an in-hand evaluation following the class.

The horse that most impressed the judges today was the mare Spotlight by Secret-Fürst Romancier, ridden by Sina Aringer. This beautiful, harmoniously built bay mare was bred by Laura Brandenburg. She is owned by Moormann-Hanke GbR, which can be pleased with the 9 awarded for her relaxed, elastic trot with beautiful mechanics, as well as the 8.5 for all other criteria. This resulted in a final score of 8.6 and a clear victory for Spotlight, who had already arrived in Höven with a win in the riding horse class in Ochtrup under her belt.

Medalist

The silver medal went to the gelding Iceman by Asgard’s Ibiza-Grey Flanell, who scored an 8.4; he was ridden by Andreas Klinker and is owned by Hengsthaltung Kemper GmbH. Iceman impressed with scores of 8.5 for both trot and canter, as well as a 9.0 for walk. He didn’t score quite as highly in the rideability criterion under Mareike Mimberg, receiving a 7.0 there. However, he once again earned a straight “Very Good” for conformation and quality of build.

The bronze medal went to the gray mare Nexolia Kyniska, with a score of 8.3 (trot 8.5, canter, walk, and conformation 8.0, Rideability 9) to the gray mare Nexolia Kyniska, a daughter of the former World Dressage Champion Kjento out of a Vivaldi dam—meaning, here too, Dutch blood in the first two generations, which meets a Hanoverian mare line. Kyniska was bred by Günter Söhnel. Jessica Lynn Thomas presented her on behalf of Nexolia Dressage, the company founded by Canadian dressage rider and investor Vicky Lavoie.

Familiar Faces Among the Four-Year-Olds

Four-year-olds still compete in a qualifying class in the form of a riding horse test. In the final, however, they compete in a Class A dressage test—similar to the future National Championship.

Among the four-year-old stallions, a Westphalian stood out today—and it was one we know well: Soxx NRW, a son of Secret Londontime, bred by Simon Kohlenbrenner and owned by his company, Pferd24 GmbH. Last year, Veronika Steinhof rode this handsome black horse to the title at the Bundeschampionat. Today, he demonstrated that he has continued to develop exceptionally well. The 9.5 for rideability speaks for itself and was well-deserved. But Soxx isn’t just on the right track in terms of training; he also possesses the fundamental gaits required for top-level competition—scores of 9.0 for walk, trot, and canter also speak for themselves. The judges awarded an 8 for conformation and quality of build, resulting in a final score of 8.9.

The best Oldenburg horse was the debutant Dynamite, a son of PS-Ferinrich, bred by Philipp Mücke and owned by Bollmoor Partner GmbH & Co. KG. Brandi Roenick presented the bay, who also received a 9 for all three basic gaits. Rideability was rated 8.5, conformation 8.0. Final score: 8.7.

Third place went to Salsero CF, ridden by Thomas Schulze, with a score of 8.6. He received a 9 for his canter and an 8.5 in all other categories. The “CF” in the name stands for breeder and owner Dr. Christine Feichtinger, for whom Thomas Schulze also rides the stallion Bon Courage, a finalist in the 2025 Nuremberg Burg Cup. Bon Courage and Salsero are half-siblings. Both are by Anada out of Vivaldi-Rohdiamant.

Last year’s champion, the winning stallion La Paix by La Vie, owned by Helgstrand Dressage, did not compete this year.

Mares and geldings

As we all know, shared joy is double joy, and so today there was double cause for celebration for two teams over their victory. Last year’s champion, Pommery Look OLD, shared the victory with the 2025 bronze medalist, Emma Gold. Both mares earned a score of 8.5 in the arena.

Emma Gold is a daughter of Bon Vivaldi out of a Rohdiamant dam, bred by Heinz Ahlers from his successful bloodline, which has produced, for example, the stallions Rosengold, Best of Gold, Sungold, and others. Moritz Gehrmann is not only a rider here but also a co-owner, and he was pleased to receive a consistent score of 8.5 for his talent.

Although Pommery Look OLD comes from Christine Arns-Krogmann’s breeding program, she is, for once, not from the Weihegold dynasty. This daughter of Florida TN descends from a maternal line with Anglo-Arabian roots, and that is evident in this elegant mare’s appearance. The judges awarded a 9 for conformation and quality of build, an 8 for walk, and 8.5s for all other criteria. Pommery Look was presented by Alina Schneider.

With two winners, the 8.3 score earned by A Magic Moment HJN by Bonds-Don Schufro was the second-highest, but it meant the white ribbon for third place—the second one today for Thomas Schulze, who was also in the saddle here. He presented the dark chestnut mare, bred by Theo and Sabrina Vagepohl, for Helene Raatgering. She received a 9 for her trot, an 8 for both her canter and walk, and an 8 for conformation. Her rideability was also rated at 8.5.

Two horses also tied for fourth place. One of them was Zuperboy, ridden by Hermann Gerdes. This son of Zuperman, bred by Paul Wendeln, clearly takes after his dam, the former Bundeschampioness Cindy by Sir Donnerhall, both in appearance and in the quality of his movement. Scores of 8.5 for trot and rideability, combined with 8.0 in the other criteria, added up to an overall score of 8.2.

The same was true for Soul Mate XT OLD by San Amour-Foundation, bred and owned by Stefan Tietje. Last year, the black gelding won silver at the Oldenburg Championship, and Sina Aringer was in the saddle then, just as she is now. Here, he received scores of 8.5 for trot and walk, and 8.0 for all other criteria.