Viva Las Vegas, National Champion among six-year-old dressage horses

Following Viva Weltina’s success among the five-year-olds, it was now Viva Las Vegas who impressively demonstrated that Isabell Werth’s great hope for the future, Viva Gold OLD, not only possesses all the qualities needed for the big arena himself, but also reliably passes them on to his offspring.

His son, Viva Las Vegas—also a stallion with an Oldenburg Equine Passport, bred by Reinhard Baumgartner out of a Foundation dam—resembles his sire in several ways. He is just as handsome, possesses just as much mechanical ability, and perhaps even more elasticity than Viva Gold. Charlott-Maria Schürmann is training the bay for owner Anne Haggenmüller and was able to qualify him for the 2025 World Championships for Young Dressage Horses.

The pair’s competition appearances this year can be counted on one hand. In Elmlohe, the stallion competed in his first Class M dressage test and qualified for the Bundeschampionat with a score of 8.54. That was at the end of July. The next competition was in Warendorf. There, they had already won the qualifier—and today they went one better.

They won the final with a score of 9.06. That was slightly lower than in the qualifiers. Perhaps the stallion was lacking a bit of energy today after the exhausting days spent in the stable tent and all the hours between competitions. Especially during the trot sequence, he wasn’t quite as stable in his balance and posture as he had been on Thursday. But he still put in a very impressive round.

Viva Las Vegas always impresses at a trot, especially with his tremendous freedom of movement in the shoulders. The pair performed best today during the canter session, where the stallion carried himself very well and already demonstrated confident, well-executed and very expressive changes.

Comment

“Wow! This trot sequence has an incredible amount of positive energy. This stallion immediately wins you over,” said commentator Nicole Nockemann as she began her commentary on the judges’ scores. However, she also noted that there were brief, audible balance issues during the trot sequence, during which the stallion’s hooves “caught” on each other. “He needs to be more relaxed throughout the entire trot sequence,” said Nockemann. But she also acknowledged that this trot pattern demands a lot from young horses. Given the distance involved, it’s understandable if a young horse briefly loses its balance. The trot work received a 9.3.

In the step sequence, the judges praised the consistency of the rhythm and the improved coverage of the ice during the build-up from the center step, but noted room for improvement in the transition back just before the step pirouettes; 8.0.

As far as the canter was concerned, Nockemann had nothing but praise—for the fluidity of the rounded canter, the bent Hansen, the pronounced suspension phase, the extension of stride in the extended strides, and the very, very confident and well-prepared transitions. “We’re very close to the maximum score there,” ergo: 9.5.

Nicole Nockemann attributed the score of no more than 9.0 in suppleness to the horse’s tendency to reach forward during the trot sequence and a brief loss of balance in a walk pirouette. At the same time, however, she praised the stallion’s attitude. “A young horse that performs with such high concentration for so long deserves a ‘Very Good’ as well.”

The overall score for “Top Athlete with a Clear Future” was 9.5. Final score: Champion with 9.06.

“Oh my, there’s blood on my shoe…”

There was huge cheering—but spectators also pointed out that the stallion had a slight bleed in the pastern. This must have happened when he caught his hind hooves during the test. The judges consulted the LPO regulations and concluded that the horse should undergo a veterinary examination, but that the incident would have no further consequences because the bleeding was beyond the rider’s control. The veterinarian gave the all-clear. It was just a scratch, and the bleeding had stopped almost immediately. Nevertheless, Viva Las Vegas was granted a dispensation for the award ceremony.

Impressive Fiete

A completely different type of horse, but no less impressive than Viva Las Vegas, is the Westphalian stallion Fiete NRW by Fashion in Black-Rock Forever, bred by Robert Drenker, owned by Dr. Peter Brenske, and presented by Kira Laura Soddemann. It’s impressive to see how Rock Forever continues to pass on his distinctive athletic conformation even in the second generation on the dam’s side. In any case, Fiete is clearly cut from the same cloth as his grandfather—long-legged, elegant, and athletic, but endowed with greater elasticity and natural impulsion.

Unfortunately, there was a minor misunderstanding right at the start of the exercise when the stallion tried to break into a canter after the greeting instead of trotting. Soddemann was able to correct this almost immediately, but it was a costly mistake. The first medium trot ended up being a bit too fast as well. But by the time they got to the lateral movements, at the latest, the rider had the stallion under control again and improved with every passing minute.

Fiete set off at a relaxed walk and covered some distance. Afterward, he willingly let himself be led back and performed quite small, lively walk pirouettes.

The canter is active, springy, and balanced, and already shows very good weight-carrying ability. The changes were all well-executed; with the exception of the first one, they were already quite natural and, in some cases, truly expressive.

Comment

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: A “wow” would have been appropriate here as well, but this time Nicole Nockemann put it differently: “an overall really, really great performance,” attributing this to the “very powerful, very energetic trot,” in which “the silhouette is just right.” The fluid transitions were also a plus. The slight haste in the extensions prevented a score even higher than 8.7.

In the step sequence, Nockemann noted that it was performed “consistently from the start with good flexibility” and maintained even at a fast pace along the diagonal, demonstrating that the step pirouettes were already very centered. A score of 8.8 was awarded here.

The judges also noted the energetic flow from the trot in the canter, along with plenty of impulsion and “the ability to work toward a forward-upward movement.” However, they noted that the frequency in the extensions still needs work so that the strides become longer rather than more hurried. 8.6

As far as responsiveness is concerned, the judges praised the horse’s attitude; taking into account the brief moment of hesitation at the start and the “not perfectly calm mouthwork,” it received a score of 8.8.

In the perspective event, there was a 9th-place finish: silver with 8.78.

Bronze for the dream team

Amid all the pros, a 17-year-old junior, Zoe Marie Hachmeier, had also made her way into the mix. She presented Sparky, a jet-black son of Secret—and she did it beautifully! The pair had to take the long way around via the small final to secure a victory with a score of 8.56—exactly the score that earned them a truly sensational and well-deserved bronze medal today.

With very subtle, light contact and everything performed in one smooth, flowing motion, the pair delivered a successful performance. The pair scored an 8.4 for trot and walk, an 8.8 for active, springy canter, an 8.5 for suppleness, and an 8.7 for perspective.

Nicole Nockemann described the trot as “both powerful and light-footed.” “Here and there,” they would have liked to see a calmer mouth. In the walk, they particularly praised the regularity. In the walk pirouettes, however, they noted minor hesitations, which were factored into the score for responsiveness. In the canter, the judges praised the horse’s suppleness and activity, as well as the rider’s handling of the situation when the gelding did not immediately respond to the first aid during the second change and she simply and calmly “asked for it” again.

The harmonious impression the two make is no coincidence. Sparky was four years old when Zoe took him on. He had already been to Warendorf once before. In 2023, while still under Jessica Lynn Thomas, he placed fifth among the three-year-old mares and geldings. At age four, Zoe Hachmeier then competed him herself in Class A riding and dressage tests.

At age five, they won a series of Class L dressage competitions and qualified for Warendorf once again, but didn’t make it past the small final. What a great improvement!

You can find all the results here.