Sina Aringer and Dalma Sia Bellante Win the Burg Cup Qualifier at the Fichtenhof in Schäftlarn

The sun was shining brightly as Sina Aringer and her eight-year-old Oldenburg mare Dalma Sia Bellante, a daughter of Secret, kicked off the qualifiers for the Nuremberg Burg-Pokal Final in Schäftlarn at the Fichtenhof today at exactly 11:15 a.m. And Dalma Sia Bellante was beaming, too.

The pair put together an exceptionally beautiful and harmonious performance, with highlights including the trot and canter traverses, the walking sequence, a right pirouette that shows great promise for the future, and a left pirouette with a slight loss of balance. But those were just minor details; the overall performance was absolutely cohesive, as evidenced by a horse that was as content as it was eager to cooperate and a rider who applied subtle aids. The pair received a score of 76 percent. No one was expected to top that today.

For Sina Aringer, this marks yet another major success in her riding career, following her victory last weekend at the Bundeschampionat, where she rode, among others, the former DSP champion stallion Bonds in Gold to the title. Dalma Sia Bellante is still owned by her breeder, Stefaan van den Elsen. He had entrusted her to Beatrice Hoffrogge as a young horse, and Hoffrogge competed with the mare at the Bundeschampionat when she was five years old. In 2024, she did not compete in any shows at all.

In 2025, Sina Aringer competed in her first official tournament, riding her first M-level dressage classes, and this year they took on the S-level. They had already competed in the qualifiers in Balve and Görlitz, but on both occasions, with scores below 70 percent, they were far from securing a ticket to Frankfurt. On their third attempt, they finally succeeded—and they weren’t the only ones.

Second place in the league and qualified for Frankfurt

Raphael Netz and Glamourdoc had already placed fourth in the Munich qualifiers and third in Balve this year. After the Victory yesterday In the “qualifying round,” they had good reason to hope that they would secure a spot in Frankfurt on their third try. They’ve got it in the bag—even though they didn’t win this time either. The pair did deliver an expressive, flawless performance, for which they were rewarded with a personal best. But it wasn’t enough to knock Sina Aringer and Dalma Sia Bellante off the top spot. With a score of 74.680 percent, the team world champions and the increasingly athletic-looking son of Glamourdale took second place today.

At any rate, the two of them have secured their ticket to Frankfurt. That’s because, in addition to the eight winners of the individual stages, the four runners-up with the most points also qualify. With a score of 74.680 percent, Netz’s Glamourdoc is the horse with the highest score and a silver ribbon. Since there are only two stops left (Darmstadt and Guxhagen-Dörnhagen), they’ve secured their spot in Frankfurt.

The same applies to Frederic Wandres and Fänomen de Malleret, who finished second in Hagen with 74.463 percent and are therefore guaranteed a spot in the grand final.

Pony Star Wins “DERBY Stars of Tomorrow”

The DERBY Stars of Tomorrow is a competition format aimed at both riders under 25 at the Grand Prix level and up-and-coming Grand Prix horses between the ages of eight and twelve. Ann-Cathrin Rieg and her pony stallion Steendieks Derrick fit nearly both categories. Last year, they were still successful in the Piaff Promotion Prize. But at the beginning of this year, Ann-Cathrin celebrated her 26th birthday, which means she is no longer part of the relevant junior target group. Not so for her pony stallion by Morgenstern’s Dalai, who, at twelve years old, ensures that the pair still belong among the “Stars of Tomorrow.”

Since Derrick was six years old, Ann-Cathrin has been riding him and has trained him from Dressage Horse Class L all the way up to Grand Prix. And how! In seven tournaments, the pair has won seven S***-level classes and placed in every one. In Schäftlarn, this light-footed, compact-sized dancer—with a great talent for piaffe and passage—won both classes: yesterday the Intermédiaire II (72.410) and today the S7 (74.870).

Second place went, as it did yesterday, to Rudolf Widmann of Munich, riding Romantic Prinz OLD—an elegant, light-footed horse strongly influenced by his sire, Rock Forever—this time with a score of 73.868 percent.

Jessica von Bredow-Werndl and newcomer Dancier Gold were able to raise their scores even higher compared to yesterday. The stallion has mastered the movements. He still lacks that effortless ease in the test and that relaxed flow, but the four-time Olympic champion was able to execute everything perfectly and was rewarded with 72.160 percent and third place.

You can find all the results here