Germany seals a win at Boekelo, but a strong British team takes the
Nations Cup series title as team and individuals showcase young equine talent
GERMANY may have won the
team and individual competitions
at Boekelo, but Laura Collett’s
second on London 52 secured the
Nations Cup series title for Britain.
France came to Boekelo for the
Nations Cup final in the lead, 10
points ahead of Britain. Germany,
with just one victory on the board
to France’s four and Britain’s two,
was in fourth behind Sweden.
However, the German team of
two highly experienced riders —
Julia Krajewski, on her reigning
German champion Samourai
Du Thot, and Dirk Schrade
with Unteam De La Cense —
and a less experienced pair in
Christoph Wahler (Carjatan S)
and Ben Leuwer (BGS Urlanmore
Prince), were in pole position
after dressage. Julia was second
individually on a mark of 22.6,
while the Netherlands’ Tim Lips
and the imposing Bayro led for
the home side with 19.2.
Laura was best of the Brits,
who were all on young horses
doing their first CCI3*, on her
own, Karen Bartlett and Keith
Scott’s Blenheim eight- and nine-
year-old CIC3* winner London
52, in third with 23.1.
“At Blenheim, he felt like he
took a deep breath in the arena,
accepted it and got on with it, and
since then his work at home had
stepped up a level,” said Laura.
Her team-mates Pippa Funnell
(Maybach, 14th with 27.7), Alex
Bragg (Shannondale Percy, 21st
with 29.9) and Izzy Taylor (Direct
Cassino, 31st with 31.8) together
left Britain second at that stage,
0.7 penalties behind the Germans.
THE INFLUENTIALTRACK
THIS was Sue Benson’s 18th and
final year as Boekelo’s course-
designer. It cannot be an easy
place to design, as it is flat and
virtually featureless, but this year
she had reversed the track.
“It rode so much better this
way round as you went into the
wooded part much later in the
track and it was easier to settle
into a rhythm more quickly,”
said Laura.
It was a fairly tricky track
with lots of places where minor
errors of line would be influential,
requiring honesty and trust on the
part of often young and relatively
inexperienced horses. The bright,
low sun meant that diferent
shadows were cast in the wooded
areas throughout the day.
Forty-six of the 77 starters
jumped clear, 14 of them inside
the time. The most influential
fence was 8ab, a double of triple
brush arrowheads.
Tim Lips stopped the clock
dead on the optimum time of 10
minutes with 12-year-old Bayro,
a grey by Casantos, and Samourai
Du Thot showed all his CCI4*
experience by flying round with 11
seconds to spare, despite taking
one long route.
All four of the British team
jumped clear; Laura and nine-
year-old London 52 were the
quickest with 1.6 time-faults,
while the three eight-year-olds
also collected a sprinkling of
time-penalties.
Nicola Wilson and new ride
Yacabo BK were the second
highest-placed Brits after
dressage, fifth on 25.1, but a
run-out at 21b, the second of two
narrow brushes placed either
side of a gateway on a sharp turn,
dropped her down the order. Tina
Cook and Killadeas also picked up
penalties here.
Izzy Taylor and Springpower,
sixth after dressage with 25.5,
rose to fourth with a clear inside
the time after Sweden’s Therese
Viklund (Diabolique) picked up
six time-faults, dropping her from
fourth to ninth.
There were strong cross-
country performances from British
riders including David Doel, Willa
Newton and Matt Heath, but Tom
McEwen was the only one — apart
from Izzy Taylor — to make the
time, bringing Watkins home one
second under the optimum.
A GAME CHANGER
THE most significant news on the
final day was that Alertamalib’or,
winner of the seven-year-old
world championship at Le Lion
D’Angers in 2017 with Astier
Nicolas and sitting in fifth
place at Boekelo with a clear
cross-country round under the
time, was withdrawn before the
showjumping with an overreach.
This destroyed any chance France
had of keeping Britain from the
Nations Cup series victory.
The Germans had extended
their lead over Britain after cross-
country, with three rides in the
top 15, and had two showjumps in
hand. The British team was less
than one fence ahead of Sweden,
with Ireland in fourth place.
The showjumping arena at
Boekelo is atmospheric, with
big crowds pressing right up to
the barriers, and there were few
clear rounds outside of the top
contenders.
“It was clever — all the fences
were very spread out, so you had
to see your own distances, and
that helped make the time very
tight,” said Laura Collett.
She jumped a beautiful clear
round on London 52, who came
to eventing from showjumping
in 2016.
“He was just playing with the
fences,” observed British chef
d’equipe Richard Waygood.
Laura said: “I was worried
about the crowds — he freaked
out at them at Blair and went very
green on me, but he was super
today. The fact that the time was
tight meant I had to ride him
forward, which he loves.”