The winners in the Lambertz Nations' Cup have been listed since 1977. It is easier to count how often Germany hasn’t won this international game between the dressage nations – four times. However, the new victory was no sure-fire success either.

The German team was actually supposed to comprise of four members. But at the last moment, Sönke Rothenberger withdraw Fendi and it was too short notice to appoint a pair to replace him. So, Katharina Hemmer with Denoix PCH, Frederic Wandres with Bluetooth OLD and Isabell Werth with Wendy de Fontaine had to hold their own without him. A task they mastered with flying colours. Hemmer and her Destano son were awarded a score of 75.413 percent, putting them in the lead. Wandres and Bluetooth managed to top that with a score of 76.891 percent. Isabell Werth and Wendy’s was the icing on the cake: 79.761 percent, which also meant the victory in the individual classification for the pair. The German team’s total score amounted to 232.065 percent.

Isabell Werth may not have been a member of every German Nations’ Cup victory to-date, but of many of them. And nevertheless, she raved: “’Winning a Nations’ Cup is always something special and in Aachen it is very special.”

The national coach, Monica Theodorescu, was proud of her team: “Nobody made any errors and I am very happy,” she summed up, albeit admittedly, hardly surprised. Regarding Rothenberger’s withdrawal she commented that it had been a shame that it came too late to appoint a substitute and that they had simply had to deal with the situation.

Second place for the Belgian team on a total score of 219.804 points was a small sensation, which was above all attributable to the performance of Justin Verboomen and his just nine-year-old Zonik Plus. The pair also came second in the individual competition on a score of 78.348 percent. The team was completed by Larissa Pauluis with Flambeau (72.065), Domien Michiels with Intermezzo van het Meerdaalhof (69.391) and Charlotte Defalque with Botticelli (68.283). Their combined score: 219.804 points and the best result a Belgian team has ever achieved in the Dressage Stadium at the Soers. The quartet’s comment about this historic achievement? “Nothing, we are still in shock!”

Third place went to Sweden with an accumulated score of 216.935 points. The team comprised of Patrik Kittel with Touchdown (73.587), Maria von Essen with Invoice (72.565), Tinne Vilhelmson Silfvén with Hyatt (70.783) and Caroline Darcourt with Lord Django (66.239). Patrik Kittel was not only delighted about the team’s result, but also about that of his fellow competitors: “It is nice to see everything change and new riders and new teams coming up. It is the same with Sweden, we have new riders on the team and with Stefan (Jansson) a new chef d ’équipe. So, we came to Aachen with no expectations and now we are sitting here coming third – that is really cool!

CHIO Aachen Head of Sport, Birgit Rosenberg agreed: “I am completely with Patrik. So many new faces! It keeps the sport alive. It was super sport and great pictures for our sport.”