Guxhagen: Isabell Werth and Back for Good, as well as Anna Schölermann and Vitally PCH, have qualified for the Louisdor Prize final

Isabell Werth and Back for Good secured their spot in the Louisdor Prize final with a victory in Guxhagen, scoring just under 76 percent. The dark chestnut, owned by Austrian Victoria Max-Theurer, rode a clear round with several highlights. This performance was even better than their showing in Pinneberg, where the pair had also won but were subsequently disqualified because they lacked an S-level dressage placement prior to the start.

Back for Good Gets into the Spirit of the Season

During the greeting, Back for Good glanced up at the arena ceiling—just as he had done in the warm-up test the day before—but quickly regained his composure. Then he really got going. This son of Ben Benicio knows how to impress with his powerful trot. The passage seemed more relaxed today. The transition out of the first piaffe was executed diligently and with great ease. At times, Werth had to rein him in repeatedly to channel the Brandenburg horse’s energy in the right direction. As with the first, the pair executed the second piaffe with great precision. The collected walk was more relaxed than in the previous day’s test.

still lacks a

consistent

rhythm

. The strong stride isn’t one of the highlights in this DSP gelding’s repertoire—at least not yet. One would like to see him ride more freely, with a clear stride and a more pronounced overreach. Isabell Werth, however, is certain: “Normally, he really does have a figure-eight gait,” but today he was just “a little ‘on’.”

Isabel Wert performed her routine during the left pirouette. It was slightly longer than the one she showed yesterday. The flying changes to two jumps were straight and forward. The pair also successfully executed the 15 energy changes this Sunday. Yesterday, they lacked forward momentum.

Nines for the passage

On the final centerline, the Ben Benicio son once again showcased his full talent for passages and piaffes. For the passage, he received mostly nines here. With more experience and the resulting suppleness, this gelding is a horse you can imagine competing anywhere—even right at the very front.

Werth was more than happy. “He’s really unbelievably awesome—is it okay to say that? He’s so sweet. He gives it his all. And of course, he still needs to settle in a bit more. But when you see the technique this horse has in the piaffe-passage, the diagonal movement—he really has no weaknesses. And he’s a blast to ride because he’s so honest.”

A routine in the saddle gives the horse a sense of security

Commentator Heike Kemmer emphasized how important the rider’s self-confidence is for a horse with so much energy. “She is, of course, the most experienced rider in the world, presenting the piaffe-passage here. And she has such a clear vision of how it should be done—she can apply that to any horse and communicate it to any horse. And the horses then execute it. Every other rider might approach it with some uncertainty—maybe my transition isn’t quite there yet, or the piaffe is still moving forward. Not Isabell. She knows how to do the passage. The piaffe stays in place, then transitions out again. That’s what she conveys to her horses—that’s her great talent.”

Anna Schölermann Delivers a Stunning Ride

Anna Schölermann and Vitally PCH had perhaps the best ride of their careers together today—at least in the competition arena. The Oldenburg stallion, a son of Vitalis, had clearly made it his mission not to give up the victory so easily. His piaffes and passages flowed as if they were his fourth basic gait. For a few seconds at a time, the transitions sometimes lacked that final burst of power in the hind leg. But Anna Schölermann quickly got the hind leg engaged again.

Fantastic Contact

Perhaps the most beautiful aspect, aside from all the technical highlights, was the exemplary contact. Hubertus Schmidt’s student presented a dark chestnut horse that carried itself naturally in every phase. And in the saddle was a rider who, from a deep seat, applied just as much aid as was necessary. This is what dressage riding should look like!

Heike Kemmer: “A natural Grand Prix horse”

Only the 15 single-change transitions—those should look different. After 13, it was all over. Heike Kemmer summed up the problem perfectly in her commentary. “A wonderful horse—absolutely a natural Grand Prix horse. What talent for piaffe and passage! But he doesn’t drop many points in the other movements either. If the rider were to count a little better, of course, the ones would work out too. No, joking aside. That wasn’t the reason—the line was just poorly chosen. They came out of the corner with a lot of momentum. She needed that momentum, too. But he drifted to the left. And then things get tight for the horses, and at some point, that’s the end of the one-point scores for them. She should have ridden more to the right, aimed more toward the corner, knowing that a horse pulls to the left, to give him the space he needs.”

Anna Schölermann confirmed the analysis offered by the Olympic team champion. But she was more than happy. During the medal ceremony, she had to wipe a few tears from the corners of her eyes. With a score of 74.234 percent, the pair from Fleyenhof achieved the second-highest score of the season.

“She’s still at that age—we’ll take that into account…”

Lucie-Anouk Baumgürtel and First Vienna took third place. The reigning U25 European team champions put their experience to full use. Because the mare—which the young rider trained on her own—is ten years old this year and thus still eligible for the Louisdor Prize, she had decided to ride the Hanoverian Vitalis daughter in two qualifying rounds.

Heike Kemmer praised her competition routine and the precision of an experienced championship rider—a total of 19 European Championship titles! “Lucie, thanks in part to her excellent training in the German equestrian system—from pony, junior, and young rider levels—knows how to ride good lines. The horse has incredible potential for piaffe and passage as well; she showed us some magnificent passages. Her piaffes were great, too—the only thing missing in her exit is that little finishing touch, which might then earn the transitions an even higher score.”

With 72.319 percent and a third-place finish, they didn’t quite qualify directly. But should a pair drop out, the duo from the Freiberger Hof is the obvious choice to take their place.

Results from Guxhagen

Finalists for the 2026 Louisdor Prize

Hagen

‘s

Imo Pectore, ridden by Frederic Wandres – 71.809 percent

‘s Szechuan, ridden by Dr. Annabel Frenzen – 71.149 percent

Hamburg

Maxi Kraft’s Barcelo OLD, ridden by Dorothee Schneider – 72.851 percent

Majestic Taonga, ridden by Lisa Wernitznig – 71.383 percent

Donzdorf

Henriettenhof’s Kinshasa OLD, ridden by Franz Trischberger – 72.255 percent

Gidday ridden by Carlos Manuel Valerio Caetano – 70.979 percent

Pinneberg

Veuve Clicquot FRH ridden by Frederic Wandres – 73.984 percent

Vaderland OLD ridden by Bernadette Brune – 72.723 percent

Guxhagen

Back for Good, ridden by Isabell Werth – 75.809 percent

Vitally PCH, ridden by Anna Schölermann – 74.234 percent