Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour and Mount St. John Freestyle Claim a Clear Victory at the Herning Grand Prix

Since Herning was the first competition for many pairs since the World Championships in Aachen, it was also their first indoor competition. It takes some time to get used to that atmosphere again. Even Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour’s experienced Hanoverian mare, Freestyle, found herself taking an extra glance at the decorations around the arena. Last year, the pair won the World Cup leg in Herning, and it doesn’t seem as though any other pair will be able to take the title away from them this year.

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Undisputed Victory

Right from the start of the test, Laudrup-Dufour and her 17-year-old Fidermark daughter performed as if straight out of a textbook, with a smooth, balanced parade, exemplary holding, and a prompt transition to a trot. Rhythm, suppleness, contact, impulsion, straightness, and collection—all checked off during the trot sequence. At a walk, there were moments when Freestyle let herself get slightly distracted and thus didn’t find her way into the extension and into a walking gait quite as beautifully as we’ve come to expect from her. But rhythm and stride length were still assured.

But there were other minor details today that weren’t quite as close to perfection as they were during her last competition appearance at the World Championships in Aachen. For example, in the piaffe, one would have liked to see a slightly livelier bounce off the ground, and the canter could have been a bit more energetic, especially in the traversal transitions and the pirouettes. The mare became noticeably tight in the single changes.

Still, there was no doubt that this was the best performance of the day—a victory with a score of 82.413 percent and component scores of 80.761 percent, awarded by both chief judge Henning Lehrmann and his colleague at B, Portugal’s Carlos Lopes, while Dufour’s compatriot at Table E, Susanne Baarup, awarded up to 84.891 percent.

Two on fire

It was already clear even before the World Championships in Aachen that Marieke van der Putten’s Oldenburg mare Zantana by Zonik is an exceptional horse. But here, the pair danced their way into the hearts of the spectators, and one got the impression that a new era of Dutch dressage was dawning—one that these two are helping to shape. Today, however, the sensitive mare once again showed her “exciting” side—full of energy, but not quite relaxed enough. With a score of 75.957 percent, the pair finished second.

Close behind, with 75.652 percent, was Denmark’s new championship pair: Daniel Bachmann Andersen riding Flash Gordon by Fiderbach, who is also registered with the Oldenburg Association. The pair had some great moments, but there were also repeated instances where the gelding reacted to the rein aid with his mouth clearly open and tilted behind the vertical.

Dr. Svenja Kämper-Meyer – Following the Hand

It was a completely different story for the top German pair, Dr. Svenja Kämper-Meyer and her home-bred Ampere daughter, Amanyara. If there’s a textbook example of natural carriage, it’s these two. It’s simply a pleasure to watch them. At times, one wished the Westphalian mare’s movements were a bit more relaxed throughout her body. But it was surprising that the judge for Group E, Susanne Baarup, placed them only twelfth (68.478). The other judges awarded three sixth-place finishes and one eighth-place finish, with scores ranging from 70.109 (Mats Eriksson in Group M) to 74.565 (Henning Lehrmann in Group C) percent. All in all, the pair finished in sixth place with 71.348 percent. A wonderful success!

Between her and the leaders were the Swedish World Championship pair Maria von Essen on Invoice (75.217) and Denmark’s third-ranked World Championship rider, Nadja Aaboe Sloth on Favour Gersdorf (74.50).

Dorothee Schneider and First Romance were also among the finishers. For the 16-year-old son of Fürst Romancier, today marked his first international appearance since the World Cup tournament in Lyon in 2025. After that, he took a several-month break due to injury, until Schneider carefully reintroduced him to the competition routine over the past few weeks. The pair opened the competition today with a score of 70.848 percent, and they would have scored even higher if the zigzag half-passes and flying changes had gone as planned. As it was, they finished in eighth place.

“One out” were World Cup finalist Moritz Treffinger—who had just graduated from the U25 Tour—and Cadeau Noir, with a score of 70.283 percent.

Sohler Wins U25 Tour

Speaking of the U25 division—Herning also offers a competition for up-and-coming two-legged talents on their way into Grand Prix competition: the Lövsta Future Challenge. Today, Marie Sohler—the only German among the nine starters—not only gained experience here but also claimed her first international victory. Riding the 14-year-old Hanoverian gelding Queolito by Quaterhall—which she was able to take over from Bianca Nowag-Aulenbrock as a training horse—she delivered the only ride to be scored above 70 percent, 70.128 percent, to be exact. With this result, she prevailed over Britain’s Harrison Ashton riding the Oldenburg Millennium daughter Million Dreams (69.615) and Denmark’s rising star Sophia Boje Obel Jørgensen riding KGS. Hoergaard Tabasco (69.188).

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a Burg Cup Final Contender, Wins the Prix St. Georges

Bernadette Brune secured the first German victory of the day in Herning early this morning at 7:30 a.m. with her horse San to Alati—the pair that earned their spot in the Burg Cup Final in Elmlohe. The pair proved they could replicate their performance from Elmlohe on the international stage with a score of 71.569 percent and first place from all three judges.

They were followed by two Danish pairs: Lone Bang Zindorff on Moegelvangs Kashmir (70.098) and Joachim Thomsen with Anthony Pax (69.559).

CDI3* Grand Prix Remains in Denmark

The day in Herning began early and ended—at least for the dressage riders today—with the CDI3* Grand Prix. The victory went to a Danish duo, Ida Kirstine Bjørn riding the nine-year-old Sparaday, who scored 69.674 percent.

Swedish rider Ebba von Essen, the cousin of World Cup rider Maria von Essen—with whom she runs a training stable—was delighted with her second-place finish. Ebba had saddled the Oldenburg stallion Dantes Specter and rode the son of Dante Weltino—bred by Bernhard Schrapper—to a score of 69.543 percent.

Third place went to Anna Toosbuy Rasch, formerly better known as Anna Kasprzak, who rode her 11-year-old dressage horse Everian L—a World Championship finalist—to a score of 68.870 percent.

The top German pair was Helen Langehanenberg and Straight Horse Ascenzione, who placed fifth with a score of 68.239 percent.

The two U25 European champions, Rose Oatley and Alive and Kicking, still had some coordination issues in their first international Grand Prix and had to settle for 12th place today with a score of 65.761 percent.

Communication misunderstandings and the resulting mistakes in the routine were also the reason why Dorothee Schneider and Karlijn V. did not score higher than 67.739 percent.

You can find all the results here.