German Lucie Anouk Baumgürtel did the double at the 2017 European Pony Championships, which concluded in Kaposvar, Hungary, on Sunday 30 July 2017. Baumgurtel not only won the kur gold medal after grabbing team and individual test gold earlier this weekend, but she also grabbed her second, consecutive European Pony Champion's title after already winning the pony Euros in 2016. The kur silver went to Denmark's Louise Christensen, while the bronze was also snatched by a Dane, Sara Aagaard Hyrm.
The Kur to Music finals at the European Pony Championships usually bring very little surprises to the score board and the final ranking is often a carbon copy of the individual test in case riders make no blatant mistakes in their freestyle. The choice in music has very little effect on the judges as they usually adapt the artistic marks to the technical score. A higher degree of technical difficult might filter through in the points, but the quality of the musical composition or production never not. Artistic scores are most of the time directly proportional to the technical mark.
The 13-year old Baumgurtel and her 12-year old Holsteiner bred buckskin Massimiliano (by Monsun N x Cep Cennedy N) were the hot favourites for the gold and the young German fulfilled her duty in an exemplary way. Riding to music by Lord of the Dance, Lucie Anouk finished her test with a one-handed line and scored 81.550% for the victory and gold medal. Four judges ranked her first, one had the pair second.
"She was simply sovereign. To repeat her achievement of last year is total class," said German team trainer Cornelia Endres.
Danish Louise Christensen repeated her silver performance from the individual test and also took kur silver aboard her 14-year old Dutch Welsh bred Vegelin's Goya (by Verona's Bo-Gi x Leuns Velds Darling Boy). The duo followed Baumügurtel in a distance with an overall total of 79.600%. Goya has been the Christensen family pony since 2012. He was a fixed member on the Danish team for six years. He did the 2012 and 2013 Euros with elder sister Maria, missed out on the 2014 euros and with Louise he competed at the 2015, 2016 and 2016 Championships. In Malmo in 2015 he was fifth twice, in Vilhelmsborg in 2016 he got double bronze and now in 2017 in Kaposvar double silver.
Denmark's Sara Aagaard Hyrm and the 15-year old Rhinelander palomino Der Harlekin B (by Golden Dancer x Dornik B) were fourth in the individual test but able to overtake German Jana Lang on Cyrill in the freestyle. Hyrm and Der Harlekin B finished on 77.400% and finally got the long-coveted bronze medal after three fourth places in the individual competitions at the 2016 and 2017 European Championships. Hyrm's bronze medal was also a wonderful reward and consolation for the stress the family had gone through on Saturday. After the individual test prize giving, Sara was taken to the hospital by ambulance because she had developed a strong fever, probably because of a virus.
Scoring half a percentage less than Hyrm was German Jana Lang and Cyrill (by Champio de Luxe x Power Man), who landed fourth place, just off the podium, with 76.975%. She rode to music by Stefan Lang's Hier Kommt Die Maus.
German Anna Middelberg and her 9-year old Rhinelander gelding Drink Pink (by Don't Worry x Golden Highlight) scored a fifth place with 76.625%. The very talented mover Drink Pink was acquired by the Middelberg family in Sweden, where the pony was member of the Swedish team at the 2015 European Championships. Danish Sofie Hansen and her palimino Prince of Glory, which was a former Italian team pony, landed sixth place with 75.900%.
The best scoring Dutch rider was Marten Luiten on his 9-year old Dutch bred Movie Star (by Hagelkruis Valentijn) who ranked seventh with 75.475%. Great Britain's best scoring rider was Anya Kolleth on the 15-year old SL Lucci (by Lukas x Bazar) in 9th place with 73.725% while best Belgian was Françoise Hologne-Joux's student Clara Mourlon Beernaert on the now gelded Don't Dream (by Don't Worry x Dressman) in 12th place with 71.325%.
The 2017 European Pony Championships concluded in Kaposvar, Hungary and for 2018 the torch will be taken over by
Text by Astrid Appels
Photos © Lukasz Kowalski - check out a full photo gallery from the 2017 Euro Ponies.
Related Link
Eurodressage Coverage of the 2017 European Pony Championships