Katharina Hemmer and Denoix performed routinely and harmoniously in the Horses & Dreams arena. Only an insect, which caused the Oldenburg to shake his head in strong walk, caused the audience to hold their breath for a brief moment. Apart from that, the pair showed a very good canter tour, with series changes as one would wish for – textbook, Hmer’s trainer, the convalescent riding master Hubertus Schmidt must have been pleased.

Happy Athlete

Every cliff in the task underlined the impression of a permeable, contented horse. The first highlight was the backing from an almost perfect closed halt.

With a Grand Prix that receives more than 77 percentage points from judges who have also sat and judged at the Olympic show jumping competitions, that is one thing. The gap to the competition in Hagen is another. The pair from Borchen-Etteln were just under four percent ahead of the competition.

Andreas Bachmann Andersen on course for the World Cup?

What I had already hinted at in Henning became even clearer in Hagen: The Dane Daniel Bachmann Andersen has a horse under the saddle with the Oldenburg chestnut Flash Gordon that could give him a championship place in the Danish team. The Fiederbach son scored 73.456 percent. That was second place and just under three percent more than the third-placed rider.

Flash Gordon is a horse with many highlights: be it the strong trot, the cadenced and energetic passage or, in canter, the flying changes to two jumps or from jump to jump. The format gelding has a lot to offer everywhere. Especially when the going gets tough, i.e. in the canter pirouettes. These were among the best of the day – one is inclined to say “by far”.

Flash Gordon came to Daniel Bachmann Andersen for training last year; Mathis Goerens had previously trained him in Germany and placed him several times in qualifiers for the Louisdor Prize in 2024.

A surprise from the UK

The CDI4* Grand Prix in Hagen also had a small, or perhaps one should say dainty, surprise in store: Sadie Smith from Great Britain came third with Swanmore Dantina. The black mare, like the first winner of the day Dante’s Pearl, a daughter of Dante Weltino, is reminiscent of her half-brother Dieudonné, who has just been successful in the World Cup Final under Raphael Netz. She has a delicate foundation but an energetic and powerful hind leg. There was also a 9.0 for the strong trot. What makes this mare special is that she has no real weaknesses. The trot is energetic and energetic, the canter with very good flying canter changes. The piaffe is secure and, given a little more experience, still has room for improvement.

From the Carl Hester School

The pair, who came sixth in the freestyle at the World Cup tournament in London, among others, dropped points in the zig-zag traversal today. Sadie Smith was a stable rider at Carl Hester for many years when the two medal winners Valegro and Uthopia were trained there. Swanmore Diamantina is registered with the British Hanoverian Association. Her dam Charatana is Oldenburg and descends from Brigitte Wittig’s Grand Prix stallion Charatan W.

Semmieke Rothenberger narrowly misses out on the podium

With a faultless ride, Semmieke Rothenberger and her Farrington could have made it onto the podium. Just one point separated the show jumper from the pair from Great Britain. The faulty single changes alone cost the combination, who were extremely successful in the U25 camp, at least 24 points. In addition to the passage, the pair also scored points with their expressive pirouettes. A fourth place that felt like more (71.587).

The midfield belonged to “the boys”

With Annabel Pidgley and Vamos Amigos, who became team world champion for Denmark under Cathrine Dufour in 2022, another “young” pair finished in fifth place (71.413).

The reigning European team champion Moritz Treffinger came sixth with Cadeau Noir (70.174) with a cleverly designed ride that emphasized the horse’s strengths and made the most of the less strong moments. Of all things, there was a momentary lack of energy in the gallopirouette on the right, which is actually one of the top moves of the pair from Gestüt Bonhomme.

With Lisa Müller and Mondrian (69.587) and Ingrid Klimke with First Class (69.217), two German combinations finished in seventh and eighth place with over 69 percent.

Results CDI4* Grand Prix Horses and Dreams 2026