Frederic Wandres rides Veuve Clicquot FRH to first Intermédiaire II victory

The home fixture in Ankum offered Frederic Wandres the perfect opportunity to show the Hanoverian gelding Veuve Clicquot FRH, who had just turned eight, in advanced (S***) level for the first time. The pair won the Intermédiaire II with 72.281 percent.

Among the highlights of her performance were the reinforcement and the series changes. The first piaffe on the diagonal, i.e. without leaning on the rail, received a score of 7.0 from all the judges. The second was not quite as good. Veuve Clicquot FRH also received scores of up to 7.5 for the pirouettes.

In the footnotes (which fortunately still exist nationally) the pair received the marks 9 – 7.5 – 7.5 for the purity of the gaits, 7 – 8 – 8 for everything in the area of impulsion, 7 – 7 – 6.5 for the horse’s permeability and obedience and 7.5 – 8 – 8 for the rider’s seat and action.

About Veuve Clicquot FRH

Veuve Clicquot FRH is an eight-year-old Hanoverian gelding by Vitalis-Fürst Heinrich from the successful breeding of Josef Bramlage, who also bred Vitalos FRH, the national champion, three-time World Championship silver medal winner, Burg Cup bronze medal winner and European Junior Team Champion. Although he is also descended from Vitalis, there are no other family ties between the two horses.

Veuve Clicquot, known as “Ville”, is actually ridden by Frederic Wandre’s fiancé, Lars Ligus. He presented the chestnut as a four-year-old in his first novice class dressage horse test in 2022 and qualified him for the Bundeschampionat for the first time the following year. With a victory in the small final, they were able to recommend themselves for the decision, where they ultimately came twelfth.

They finished much further ahead in the six-year-old class the following year. Here they took silver behind Eva Möller on Be Sure, last year’s Burg Cup finalist.

Speaking of the Burg Cup – Ville also went to several qualifiers last year, but it didn’t work out with the ticket to Frankfurt – maybe this year for the Louisdor Final.

First time over 70

Only Reinhard Richenhagen at H would have seen the winning pair Frederic Wandres and “Ville” in second place and Friederike Tebbel and the ten-year-old San Amour son Serious in first place by just one point. The two are also a well-rehearsed duo, have known each other for five years and have already competed in their first elementary class dressage tests for young horses together. Last season, they collected their first S*** placings. Today they broke the 70 percent barrier for the first time. And clearly: 71.491 percent.

Tebbel and Serious thus left last year’s U25 European Team Champions, Elisabeth von Wulffen and Triple A, behind them with a score of 69.737 percent.