Vainqueur and Touchdown Added to Line-Up for 2020 Nurnberger Burgpokal Finals

Dressage

Germany

Patrik Kittel on Touchdown and Hubertus Schmidt on Vainqueur have been added to the line-up of combinations that will compete in the 2020 Nurnberger Burgpokal Finals on 19 - 20 December 2020.

The Nurnberger Burggpokal Finals are the German Championships for Developing Prix St Georges Horses. It annually takes place in Frankfurt but this year, due to corona, they were moved to Gestut Schafhof in Kronberg, Germany, where they will take place behind closed doors with no audience.

The event is streamed live for everyone to watch.

Schmidt Replaces one of Three Schneider horses

Dorothee Schneider qualified no less than three horses for the 2020 Nurnberger Burgpokal Finals, a more than impressive feat. However the rules says one rider can only present up to two horses.

Schneider qualified Lordswood Dancing Diamond (77,366%) in Ludwigsburg, Villeneuve (77,220%) in Bettenrode, and Sisters Act von Rosencarree (77,122%) in Darmstadt.

The German Olympian decided to leave her highest scoring horse at home, Lordswood Dancing Diamond, which she is training and competing for student Tamara Rehnig.

This empty slot has been filled by Hubertus Schmidt on the 7-year old Hanoverian bred Vainqueur (by Vivaldi x Rubioso N x Absinth). They placed second at the qualifier in Nurnberg with 75.195% behind Schneider on Villeneuve. The licensed stallion is owned by Gut Neuenhof.

Kittel Replaces Hermes

Two originally qualified combinations will not compete in the Finals and have been substituted.

Marcus Hermes already announced at the beginning of November that he no longer made a combination with his qualified ride, Hugo FH. Hermes left his employer, Feiberger Hof, the owner of Hugo FH, to set up his independent business at Gut Hausking.

They will be replaced by German based Swedish rider Patrik Kittel on Touchdown. The pair placed second with 74.610% at the qualifier at Gut Hohenkamp in Dorsten on 13 September 2020. They placed behind Stefanie Wolf on Matchball.

Touchdown is an 8-year old Swedish warmblood licensed stallion by Quaterback x Sack. He is bred by the Skeppstrand family in Sweden. In 2017 Philip Ruwe showed the bay gelding at the World Young Horse Championships under the guidance of trainer Christoph Koschel. At the end of 2017 Koschel took over the ride and he competed the horse three times in 2019.

In April 2020 Kittel purchased an ownership share from the Skeppstrands. The bay was first competed competed once in May by his assistant rider, Swedish Malin Nilsson-Wahlkamp, before Kittel began showing him in September 2020.