HGW Federal Junior Championship 2026

Hannes Huthwelker (15) and his eleven-year-old OS gelding Quinn were unbeatable in the first round of the HGW Federal Young Rider Championships 2026. The pair were able to confirm their good impression in round two and received a 9.0 from judges Joachim Geilfus and Tim Rieskamp-Goedeking. As a result, they confidently advanced to the final of the best four.

The representative of the Westphalian regional association was not alone with his super score. His compatriot Marie Schlienkamp, who came second in the HGW Federal Young Rider Championships 2025, and her Colestus son Celino were also scored 9.0. And the third Westphalian among the four finalists, Frieda Heinrich on Bee Gee, was just a tenth of a point behind with a score of 8.9. The number four in the final with horse change came from the Hanoverian state association: Mette Demmler with the Holsteiner Calido son Can Jump. She scored 8.7 – to her own surprise: “I never thought we could achieve an 8.7,” she said later.

The finale

The special feature of the HGW National Young Rider Championships is the final with a horse change for the top four. Each rider presents the horse of a competitor. The riders have a few minutes to adjust to the horses assigned to them in front of an audience, are also allowed to perform small jumps and are supported by a trainer, this year by children’s national trainer Eberhard Seemann.

The horse change is a mode that Tim Rieskamp-Goedeking – who himself was one of the finalists when the traditional competition was still held in Dortmund’s Westfalenhalle – is very much in favor of: “The second round shows even more clearly whether we are really seeing a good rider – or just a good team. That is precisely the appeal of this test.”

Hannes Huthwelker is therefore not just a good rider, but a very good one. With Celino, Marie Schlienkamp’s horse, he was the last starter in the final and showed a confident rhythmic round, which was again scored 9.0. This meant victory with 18 points.

While Hannes got on well with Marie’s horse, Marie was unable to prevent Hannes’ Quinn from wiping past obstacle 9, an oxer from a bent distance. Too bad! Fourth place for the Westphalian.

Things went better for Mette Demmler and Frieda Heinrich, who both agreed that they could swap horses more often, they had so much fun riding each other’s four-legged friends. Mette received an 8.6 with Frieda’s Bee Gee and was able to overtake her colleague to win silver in the end with 17.3 points. Frieda scored an 8.3 with Can Jump and was beaten by a tenth of a point.

Hannes without a hall

Hannes Huthwelker was beaming all over his face with his medal around his neck and the winner’s sash over his shoulder. “I I am very happy that our plan worked out so well and that we were able to win both rounds. Quinn was in top form and already showed great rounds last year. Of course you hope it will work out – but the fact that it really did work out like this makes us super happy.”

Especially as the preparation didn’t go quite as well as he would have liked. “We don’t have a hall and sometimes it wasn’t so easy to train in the weather …” But the roof over his head is already being planned – the competition will probably have to dress warmly if he gets 9.0 twice with suboptimal preparation.

You can find all the results here.