Filippa Jæger Jensen Wins the Dressage Freestyle at the Pony European Championships in Le Mans; Leni-Sophie Gosmann Takes Silver

It was already becoming clear during the team event that 15-year-old Filippa Jæger Jensen from Denmark —the daughter of trainer Bettina Jæger Jensen, who is known, among other things, for having ridden the Helgstrand stallions Franklin and, earlier, Sezuan—and her 10-year-old palomino Sir Sansibar, fourth place was not the end of the line. The gelding did his job, staying close to his rider, but he wasn’t yet fully focused, still allowing himself to be distracted by the surroundings of the arena in Le Mans. He was already much more focused in the individual test, where he took silver, just a few percentage points behind the winner, Leni-Sophie Gosmann, riding Diamantini EA WE. That made today’s freestyle all the more exciting.

The starting order alone ensured that. Of yesterday’s three medalists, the gold-medal-winning pair Leni-Sophie/Diamantini was the first to enter the arena. It was a very precise, relaxed performance with imaginative lines and choreography that left the pair barely any time to catch their breath. In the canter, the circle was reduced with one hand. In the trot, they alternated between shoulder-in on the center line, a volte, and a half-traversal. In the canter, serpentines were interspersed with fluid simple changes, and the transitions between extended and collected gaits were executed with ease. It was a truly fantastic freestyle! The pair didn’t drop a single point, scoring 78.845 percent—Janine van Twist even gave them 80.250 for the “H,” and Sandrine Trimborn awarded an even higher score of 80.375 for the “C.” That put them in the lead for the time being.

Golden Pony Wins Gold in the Freestyle

Next up were Filippa Jæger Jensen and Sir Sansibar. The beautiful palomino gelding moved with greater elasticity, better collection, and more confidence uphill than Diamantini, though his trot was somewhat “floaty” and lacked the relaxed ease that had characterized the previous ride. However, they did perform a superbly expressive canter sequence with fluid single changes and a contented contact with the Baucher bit the gelding was wearing. German judge Thomas Kessler, judging the Medium Test, awarded a whopping 81.250 percent, and two other judges also gave scores starting with an 8. In the end, they scored 79.960 percent, taking the lead.

But it was still too early to break out in victory cheers. That’s because two pairs were still to come: Victoria Winkmann on Peach, who placed third among the German riders in yesterday’s individual competition, and the bronze medalists, Lilly Kasselmann and Nasdaq FH.

Bronze Medal Also Goes to Denmark

The second-to-last rider to enter the arena was Lilly Kasselmann on Nasdaq. This pony had carried his former rider, Lucie-Anouk Baumgürtel, to world-record results at the European Championships, and Lilly had meticulously prepared for the season over the winter in Wellington. The pair began with a wonderful, expressive trot sequence, with Nasdaq maintaining a secure contact and upright posture. However, the traverses weren’t quite as fluid today, and in one of the extended strides, Nasdaq broke into a canter. In the canter sequence, the pair was able to make up points with creative combinations of movements. However, the walk repetitions were slightly off-beat and not quite relaxed. As a result, the pair fell short of their potential today and finished seventh with a score of 74.59 percent.

The last pair in the competition were Victoria Winkmann and Peach. The pair may have aimed a bit too high at the start of the test and, as a result, made some rhythm errors in the extensions, for example. But then they regained their composure and had some great moments, especially during the canter sequence. With a score of 75.540 percent, they finished their first European Championships—and their time in the pony division—as the fifth-best pair in Europe.

Thus, the top spot remained unchanged—Filippa Jæger Jensen and Sir Sansibar took gold ahead of Leni-Sophie Gosmann and Diamantini EA WE. The second-best Danish pair, Steffanie Victoria Horsted Dyrlund—who is growing increasingly comfortable with Cosmo Callidus, once so successfully presented by Lilly Marie Collin—celebrated their bronze medal. The pair received 76.215 percent for their freestyle routine.