First tournament, first victory for Jessica von Bredow-Werndl and Dancier Gold FRH in Munich

Jessica von Bredow-Werndl and her new horse, Dancier Gold FRH, got off to a perfect start in the Intermédiaire II competition in Munich-Riem. The four-time Olympic champion had actually planned to compete with the 11-year-old Hanoverian stallion for the first time two weeks ago, but decided against it due to the heat that weekend.

The pair finally made their debut today. Jessica von Bredow-Werndl approached the ride with great caution, accepting only what Dancier Gold offered her. As a result, the second pirouette to the right lacked a bit of positive forward momentum, and the stallion dropped out of the movement as they rode out. Jessica von Bredow-Werndl calmly took the time to regroup, re-canter, and continue from there. They then had some truly beautiful moments in the flying changes, and the half-passes, passages, and extensions also looked promising. They won the class with a score of 71.079 percent.

Reunion with Damon’s Satellite

For anyone who has ever wondered what became of Damon’s Satelite, the former winner of Jil-Marielle Becks’ Piaff Scholarship—in today’s Intermédiaire II class, the now 18-year-old Westphalian son of Damon Hill placed second with his new rider. Since the beginning of the year, 23-year-old Bavarian Vanessa Sachs has been riding the gelding at competitions. She presented him beautifully today. Damon’s Satelite showed great suppleness and moved forward with freshness in most sequences of the test. With a score of 69.947 percent, the pair set a new personal best and received the silver ribbon.

In addition, Sachs managed to place third with Bright Diamond NRW, a son of Bordeaux. His score here was 69.079 percent.