Eva Möller Concludes Career as Competition Rider

Dressage

Germany

-- Text and Photos © Astrid Appels/Eurodressage - no reproduction allowed

Eva Möller, one of the world's most successful young horse competition riders, has decided to conclude the chapter of competition rider in her life. Möller will no longer be showing horses, but instead sh passes on the baton to her students and assistants.

The 50-year old Möller can look back on a tremendously successful career as a competition rider. Her biggest achievements came in young horse competitions - at the Bundeschampionate and World Young Horse Championships - but she also reached a mile stone when she produced and competed the KWPN licensed stallion Bordeaux up to Grand Prix level.

Forty Years at Shows

Eva Möller (née Nolden) grew up in Goch (GER) in a horsey family under the wings of her parents Klaus-Dieter and mother Wilma, who bred horses.

Eva began her show career as a 14-year old girl on Wally (by Wohlklang x Cid) in 1987, but it was Diorano (by Dialekt x Doktor) which took her to her first major championship, the 1989 Bundeschampionate, then held in Mannheim. They were seventh.

Winning the 1996 Bundeschampionate on pony Top Yellow
(Photo © private archive)

Due to her petite frame, Eva was often asked as a pony rider and in 1990 she won silver aboard Derano Gold (by Derano x Valentino) at the Championships in Verden. Numerous famous ponies followed, such as Johann Hinnemann's Kaprice (by Kirby Cane Bugler), Golden Dancer, Top Yellow, FS Pavarotti, and Going Top.

Eva met her husband, Dr. Ulf Möller and received the ride on Bouton (by Borneo x Weltmeyer), bred by Ulf's father Gerhard. She won the 1997 Bundeschampionate with him, after which the horse sold to the Capelmann family and became a FEI level ride for Nadine and later on her niece, Fabienne Lutkemeier. In 1999 she won bronze at the Bundeschampionate aboard the home-bred Contina (by Caprimond x Romadour II), which Ulf repeated in 2000 with a second bronze to the horse's name.

A Life in Hagen

The Möllers at the 2005 Bundeschampionate

Eva and Ulf got married on 6 March 1998, the same year they were hired as riders Hof Kasselmann in Hagen, Germany. They worked and lived there for almost 19 years. With high quality horses to ride, Eva began raking in a huge collection of medals and titles.

There were four breaks in Eva's competition career as she gave birth to four children: Louis, Lena, Malin, and Laurenz.

In 2003 she won silver at the Hanoverian young horse championship aboard Rotano, bronze at the 2004 Bundeschampionate on Damenwahl. In 2008 she won the Bundeschampionate with Laetare (by Lord Loxley x Lancer II).

First major success at the World Young Horse
Championships on the Italian owned Blickpunkt

Eva's big break through came in 2009 when she rode Silvia Rizzo's Blickpunkt (by Belissimo M x Weltmeyer) to bronze at the 2009 World Young Horse Championships in Verden. She also won the 2009 Bundeschampionate on Blickpunkt and earned bronze with Soliere (by Sandro Hit x Donnerhall). In 2010 she returned to the World Championships and got another bronze on Blickpunkt and silver on Soliere, while Blickpunkt got gold again at the 2010 Bundeschampionate and Soliere silver.

A career highlight followed in her partnership with Sa Coeur (by Sir Donnerhall x Don Davidoff) with whom she won gold at the 2012 AND 2013 World Young Horse Championships in Verden.

At that point in her career, the focus was always on young horses, but she had received the ride on Joop van Uytert and Paul Schockemöhle's Bordeaux (by United x Gribaldi), which she brought from young horse level to Grand Prix. In 2014 they showed in a few Nurnberger Burgpokal qualifiers and in 2015 rode their first Intermediaire II and national Grand Prix. That year she won more Bundeschampionate medals on Quel Filou (by Quaterback x Stedinger) and Der Schufro (by Der Designer x Schufro)

From Sudenhof to Syke

At the start of 2017 the Möllers wanted to explore new horizons and left Hof Kasselmann.

Ulf joined Helgstrand Dressage, while Eva began her own business in Hagen at Sudenhof riding horses for clients (Dante Quando, Thiago GS, Candy OLD) although she soon began to ride horses under the Helgstrand banner.

The first Helgstrand horses she competed in 2017 were Balia (by Belissimo M x Florestan), Florentina S (by For Romance x Sandro Hit), and Eternity (by Escolar x Sir Donnerhall). With the latter she won gold at the 2017 Bundeschampionate.

She returned to the 2018 World Young Horse Championships in Ermelo with Candy (bronze) and in 2019 rode Valverde (by Vitalis x Ampere) to a fourth place and Espe (y Escolar x Dimaggio) to an 11th spot. With So Unique (by Sezuan x Donnerhall) she won the 4-year old pilot project in Ermelo. At the 2019 Bundeschampionate Valverde won gold.

At the 2021 World Championships in Verden and 2021 Bundeschampionate she collected silver with Danciero (by Dancier x Floriscount), while at the 2022 World Championships in Ermelo it was gold with Global Player (by Grand Galaxy Win x Don Schufro). That was her last international competition as well.

Retired as a Competition Rider

On 19 - 21 June 2023 the German team selection trials for the 2023 World Young Horse Championships in Warendorf are taking place and Eva Möller is strikingly absent from the starters' list.

Upon inquiry from Eurodressage, Möller disclosed that she has decided to end her career as a competition rider.

"I became 50 this year and was thinking it was a good time to pass the reins over to our 'young guns'," Eva told Eurodressage exclusively. "I had the pleasure to ride wonderful horses and had so many champions, but there is a time for everything!"

Her key young horses have been passed on to Maxi Kira von Platen and Leonie Richter. "It is a great chance for both of them," Eva continued. "I focus now more on training and trying to find good matches horses/riders!"

Eva's last show was a local show in Syke aboard the Trakehner stallion Rheinglanz (by Helium x Couracius) on 12 May 2023.

Cheers to life: Eva at the 2009 Bundeschampionate

The question which horse was the most memorable in her career, Eva finds hard to answer. "That is like asking who my favoruite child is," she joked. "For sure the ones who were a little tricky to start with and then were trusting me so much at the end! Such great horses with such different characters. I loved them all."

When insisted, she said "Danciero is maybe the one....and Bordeaux," but she also mentioned that there were so many horses in her career, as if almost too many to remember. "It started with those outstanding ponies, Derano Gold. Diorano as the first riding horse, then Bouton, and after the baby break for sure important were Blickpunkt, Soliere, and Bluetooth," she added.