Charlotta Rogerson and Nice Touch W Qualify for the Burg Cup Final

Rain fell steadily from the sky, and the sand in the Darmstadt Viereck had turned the color of mud, but that didn’t stop Charlotta Rogerson and her eight-year-old KWPN mare Nice Touch W by Dettori-Florencio I. From the first salute to the last, the pair delivered a seamless performance full of highlights.

It started right from the trot sequence. It was wonderfully graceful the way the mare moved here, carrying that same quality into the half-passes. She performed the walk sequence at a strong tempo, in perfect time, with diligence, suppleness, and good extension. In the collected walk, the rhythm was slightly off, but the mare executed the pirouettes confidently. They could perhaps have been a bit more centered. The first canter pirouette, however, met this criterion all the more beautifully; the second was a bit larger but also successful. The extensions, developed forward and upward, were excellent; the flying changes were already very confident; and the difficult final line—with the halt, backing up, transitioning into a medium trot, and then halting at a walk to salute—was yet another real highlight.

What was it like? “It was wet and slippery—but the ride felt amazing, and the horse was incredible!” was the enthusiastic conclusion of Rogerson, who was unable to compete in the World Championships but has been riding the mare for several years and has already won bronze with her at the 2024 World Championships for Young Dressage Horses. She describes Nice Touch W this way: “The phrase ‘small but mighty’ fits her perfectly. If I can handle her from the saddle—this horse has no weaknesses.”

All the judges ranked the pair first again today. They ultimately scored 76.537 percent. That is the best qualifying result of the season so far, ahead of the final leg, which is scheduled for October 8–11 in Guxhagen-Dörnhagen. Sina Aringer and Dalma Sia Bellante achieved the second-best score—exactly 76 percent—in Schäftlarn.

Second place for tournament debutant Opoque

Rose Oatley’s Opoque by All At Once, who is just seven years old and also registered with the KWPN, has made tremendous progress from yesterday to today. For the former premium stallion, bred by Willeke Bos of Stal 104 BV, Darmstadt marked his first real competition with Rose Oatley and the first advanced (S-level) dressage test of his life. Yesterday, the pair still made a few costly mistakes—jumping over the left pirouette, a slip-up in the triple changes, and stumbling in the collected walk. They were able to correct all of that from yesterday to today.

Sure, Opoque was still a bit overzealous at a gallop, and Oatley will also have to be careful during the trot sequence to ensure that diligence doesn’t turn into haste. But all in all, the rides on both days bode well for the future. “An indescribable feeling,” the U25 European champion said happily after her ride. “I didn’t come here with any expectations. This was our first competition, his first S-level dressage test, and I’m just so proud of him for how he handled it!”

Especially since they finished second with 73.878 percent. Theoretically, the runners-up also have a chance to qualify for the Nuremberg Burg Cup final. However, only the top four in points will advance, and Rose and Opoque are already in fifth place behind Franziska Haase and Alissimo, who are on thin ice with a score of 73.950 percent heading into the final round in Guxhagen. Here, Rose and Opoque could theoretically try once more to qualify. It is the only indoor qualifying event.

Vitafina, the Trotting Wonder

As the final pair in the competition, yesterday’s runners-up—Lena Haßmann and Vitafina Amour PS by Bellin—took on the elements. From the very first second, Haßmann left no room for doubt: she had set her sights high today with the Vitalis-San Amour daughter bred by Lewitz Stud. Vitafina simply flew through the trot sequence. It was one “wow” moment after another. Unfortunately, the walk couldn’t quite keep up, and the mare still lacks some confidence in the canter at times, although the most difficult elements—the pirouettes, for example—were executed exceptionally well. But all in all, it was a very beautiful ride, which was awarded 73.780 percent and third place today.

Lena Haßmann isn’t one to take credit for other people’s achievements. “It’s true that the horse is impressive at a trot. It’s no great feat to get this horse to trot.” Where her riding skill really comes into play, she says, is in the transitions between the dressage movements. “You could also tell in the canter that she struggles with the turns here. But anyone who doesn’t understand that has no place in our sport,” she clarified, emphasizing: “Especially when it comes to carrying the weight, this horse has all the potential. I consider myself lucky to be able to ride her right now.”

Haßmann Again, and Then the King

Lena Haßmann had two horses in the running in Darmstadt, both of which she had only begun training at the start of the year. In addition to Vitafina, this also applies to the eight-year-old Oldenburg Bacchabundus OLD by Baron-Dimaggio, bred by Gudula Vorwerk-Happ and owned by Dr. Beate Rickert. The former Vice-National Champion had already placed fourth yesterday, and he repeated that finish today, this time with a score of 73.317 percent.

Yesterday, Bacchabundus still had to share the spot with Moritz Treffinger’s new addition, For Kingdom (“King”). Today, the World Cup finalist and his eight-year-old son of For Emotion—a half-brother to the former British dressage world champion Woodlander Farouche—had to settle for fifth place with a score of 73.171 percent. Nevertheless—the trend for the pair, who were making only their second competitive appearance in Darmstadt, is clearly on the rise.

You can find all the results here.