Richard Vogel

Inspired by ambition, gifted with talent, enthusiastic about show jumping – that is Richard Vogel, the living antithesis of the common Gen Z cliché. Vogel is considered hard-working, focused, reflective and strong-willed. In an interview with CHIO Aachen in 2025, he described himself as “impatient”, “stubborn” and “independent”.

Mom’s legacy

Richard Vogel was born in 1997 in Binzwangen, Baden-Württemberg, where he also grew up. His fascination for horses comes from his mother’s line. His grandfather bred horses and his mother took her children to the stables. But when Richard Vogel was just twelve years old, his mother died. A stroke of fate. But Richard Vogel says: “You grow as a person.” In his case, it was not only the person who grew, but also his passion for equestrian sport. “I wanted to dedicate my life to horses all the more,” says Richard Vogel.

Business-minded, lazy, victorious

Her brother, Richard Grom, took Vogel’s equestrian development under his wing. Vogel spent his vacations where he is at home today: at Gestüt Prinzenberg in Pfungstadt, where his uncle worked as a rider. It was here that Vogel experienced what it was like in a professional show jumping stable as a youngster. Richard Vogel has always had the ultimate feeling. He had to learn that show jumping also involves dressage work. However, he preferred practical learning to theory. He went to grammar school. However, as a career other than riding was out of the question for him, he dropped out of school shortly before his A-levels. A step that met with little understanding from those around him. But Vogel knew what he was doing and his success proved him right. After training as a horse manager under the aegis of Bernd Herbert in Mannheim, Vogel moved to Ludger Beerbaum’s stables in 2016 and worked his way up from young horse rider to Aachen starter. When he took part in Germany’s U25 Show Jumping Cup for the first time in 2018 at the age of 21, he won – as he did in the following years. He rode in a league of his own, and with very different horses.

New chapter with David Will

After two years at the Beerbaum stables, Vogel initially set up his own business again in southern Germany, again riding for Matthias Herbert, among others. Vogel’s own business was going well. But then David Will came along and offered him a job. But Vogel, who had already proven his business acumen as a teenager when he demonstrated his riding skills with a lively trade in used bridles, said: “If we’re going to do this, we’ll do it on an equal footing. And so VW Equestrian GmbH was born. It was clear why he wanted Richard Vogel: “He is the best young rider we have in Germany,” he explained in an interview with St.GEORG in 2021, back then still in Dagobertshausen. With breathtaking speed, the young rider became one of the best show jumpers in the world – side by side with his partner Sophie Hinners, who joined the Vogel/Will team in May 2021.

Arrived at the big sport

In 2021, Vogel was still the U25 winner in Aachen. Two years later, he won the Rolex Grand Prix of Geneva. He almost won the Grand Prix of Aachen the following summer. With his superstar United Touch S, Vogel was by far the fastest in the jump-off and clear to the last obstacle. The pair were already over the jump and Richard Vogel clenched his fist in victory when the pole fell behind him onto the sacred turf. Lost the victory? No, he won third place! Richard Vogel’s career has only just begun. The European Championship title in La Coruña 2025 came as no surprise to anyone. It is unlikely to be the last.