Moritz Treffinger and Isabell Werth won the Grand Prix Special classes at the CDI3* and CDIO4* Tour in Hagen

Rain poured down from the sky over Hagen, while Morricone shone in the arena at the Kasselmann farm. The 14-year-old son of Millennium—former champion stallion at the 2014 Oldenburg licensing—and U25 European Champion Moritz Treffinger are a highly elegant pair. Morricone is beautiful and light on his feet; his rider, with his slender build, sits well in the saddle and guides him with subtle aids. This elegance, paired with the look of attentive contentment on Morricone’s face, simply wins you over.

That aside, the pair had some very beautiful moments today, for example, in the springy and even passages, in the second piaffe—where they found their rhythm well and were able to transition smoothly between piaffes and passages—in the strong walk, and in the well-executed double changes.

Overall, however, one would prefer the black horse to stand a little less tall and stiff. Although Treffinger can ride the stallion with the finest contact, there is still a lack of positive connection from the hind leg through the back to the hand. If the two of them can work that out, they have the potential to achieve much more than today’s 71.723 percent.

Rating: 5 out of 10

As Morricone left the arena, basking in his rider’s effusive praise, neither of them had a dry hair—or, in this case, a dry thread—left on their bodies. But that was likely forgotten by the time Treffinger saw his score on the scoreboard and realized that, in his first CDI start with Morricone, they had already secured a victory in their second Grand Prix Special. And that was even with some restraint, as Treffinger later said:

“The rain didn’t bother Morri at all—on the contrary, it made him seem even bigger,” he said, describing how it felt to ride him, and explained: “It was only our second Special together, and I hadn’t expected things to go this well already today. Of course, it wasn’t quite as smooth as it could be. I’d say we’re maybe at a five out of ten. But that’s exactly what gives me so much motivation for our continued training and development.”

“Morris,” a trainer, takes second place on the German podium

It was also wonderful that the rider who had trained this special stallion—Lena Haßmann—was there for his first CDI victory. When Lena was still named Waldmann and worked for Gestüt Bonhomme, she won the preliminary test for the Louisdor Prize qualifier with Morricone, but then decided not to ride in the main event. She trained the Millennium son up to S*** level; today she stood beside him at the award ceremony with another young talent from her stable: the nine-year-old Governor daughter Chere Celine, for whom this was the third Grand Prix Special after Hagen in April and Munich in May. She received a score of 70.915 percent.

Naturally, the mare hasn’t fully matured yet. But the way she performs the passage with power, precise rhythm, and clear articulation, her weight-carrying ability and engagement in the piaffes, her rock-solid walk, her collected, well-sprung canter with a clear willingness to carry weight in the pirouettes—these are all attributes that give cause for great hope. Which, however, comes as no surprise.

For the past four years, Haßmann has been responsible for training the Oldenburg mare bred by Dr. Gisa Löwe. He has presented her three times at the World Championships for Young Dressage Horses, and each time they placed sixth in the final. At age seven, the mare also competed in the final of the Nuremberg Burg-Pokal, and at age eight, in the Louisdor. And now she has made her mark on the international dressage circuit.

Rounding out the German trio on the podium of the CDI3* Grand Prix Special was Lisa Müller riding Zonik Hit, who delivered a performance with a score of 69.149 percent that was free of major dressage faults, though one might have wished for a more extended hind leg and greater self-carriage. At times, things were going quite well, but then the son of Zonik immediately began to lean uphill and move away from the hand.

Aachen—Dress Rehearsal for Wendy with a Personal Best

Thirteen pairs competed in the Grand Prix Special of the CDIO4* Tour in Hagen. The clear favorites were the Grand Prix winners, Isabell Werth and Wendy. For the two of them, Hagen served as a dress rehearsal for the World Championships in Aachen. The 12-year-old daughter of Sezuan appears ready to once again compete for individual medals against European Championship silver medalists Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour and her horse Freestyle, as well as European champions Justin Verboomen and Zonik Plus.

The pair completed a flawless test, in which the mare generally achieved better suspension in her trot work, though one would have liked to see her contact be even finer and more consistent, and her mouth calmer. The half-pass to the right was executed more confidently and was more curved and fluid than the one to the left. The passages were characterized by a high degree of evenness, even though the mare’s forelegs always seem to lift off the ground slightly more actively than her hindquarters. The mare’s walk is a highlight in terms of its suppleness, effort, reach, and willingness to extend. The first piaffe was on point; in the second, the mare was even slightly more active, but she snorted sharply twice without losing the rhythm.

During the canter sequence, the pair started off very controlled on the hind leg with good lateral movements, though one would have liked to see them even more independent of the reins. Overall, however, Werth was more willing to yield—especially in the canter—allowing the mare to extend her stride better, which also had a positive effect on the flying changes. The double changes were successful; the single changes were faultless, though on several occasions she almost jumped the left-hand change on both hind legs. However, she also showed less tension than had been seen previously.

The strong canter, including the transition back, was executed very nicely. The pirouettes were centered, but one would still like to see the hind legs take more weight under the center of gravity and the hocks bend more. The last piaffe was certainly the best of the test.

The judges’ verdict: 82.426 percent—based on the scores, the best special routine the two have ever performed.

Isabell Werth’s conclusion: “J“The more ease and naturalness we bring to our imagination, the more beautiful it can naturally become. I think we’re on the right track.”

Second place for Raphi

For the second-place pair, Raphael Netz and Great Escape Camelot, not only was the test itself a sight to behold, but so was the shoulder-in before the test even began. Very few pairs in international dressage meet the criteria of the training scale as confidently as this 15-year-old son of Johnson, who was already competing at the international Grand Prix level before he joined Raphael Netz. But Netz has taken the fine-tuning to a whole new level here. That suppleness, the steady rhythm in the basic gaits, the most subtle contact—it’s all exemplary and leads to the harmony everyone desires.

Admittedly, the KWPN gelding isn’t the strongest at the piaffe, but, for example, the left-hand trot half-pass was probably the best of the day; in the right-hand half-passes, one might have wished for a bit more posture and bend in both the trot and the canter. Another highlight was the left pirouette; in the right-hand version, the gelding briefly lost his balance slightly, but Netz still completed the exercise confidently. Minor flaws that affected the result included a rhythm error in the passage reprise before the walk sequence, a brief moment of tension when transitioning to the canter from the passage, and changes of leg that one would have liked to see executed with a bit less tension.

They scored 74.255 percent, their second-best Grand Prix Special result to date. Only in Munich did they score slightly higher. But one thing is clear: In Hagen, Netz has thrown his hat into the ring even more emphatically for a spot at the World Championships.

Other winners

Third place went to the fourth-place finishers in the Grand Prix, Henri Ruoste and his Tailormade Temptation daughter, Tiffany’s Diamond. The pair delivered a largely fluid, positive performance, with Ruoste keeping the mare collected while still maintaining a fine contact. However, the Danish mare occasionally fell behind the vertical, and more extension in the frame would have been desirable during the extended movements. The pair scored 72.979 percent.

Fourth and fifth place went to members of the U.S. delegation. One of them was Jordan LaPlaca riding the 11-year-old Oldenburg Gold Play by Grey Flanell. The gelding is a highly supple horse with an energetic, springy hind leg and all the talent needed for Grand Prix competition. Unfortunately, he, too, tended to maintain an absolute rather than a relative upright posture, which prevented him from reaching his full potential. 71.745 percent is a new personal best. But he’s capable of more than just fourth place today.

Behind them came a very likable pair: Geñay Vaughn and Gino, a son of Bretton Woods who was trained by Holga Finken for the Grand Prix Sport. Vaughn consistently made an effort to keep a light hand, but her line was quite wide. The gelding appeared very relaxed and had a look of contentment on his face throughout almost the entire test. However, one would have liked to see his hind legs work more under his body. Still, it’s a pleasure to watch the two of them. A score of 71.383 percent earned the 2025 World Cup finalists fifth place today.

Conclusion by the National Team Coach

Hagen was the final selection event on the way to Aachen. Here are the thoughts of national team coach Monica Theodorescu: “We had a great Nations Cup to start with. The competition may not have been the very strongest, but we put in a very cohesive team performance. I’m very pleased about that. Our younger riders, in particular, performed exceptionally well. On Saturday, we took first and second place in the freestyle, and today we took first and second again—I’m very happy about that.”