Charlotte Fry and Glamourdale Win 2025 World Cup Finals Unopposed

Text by Eurodressage (reflecting our opinion of the competition) with quotes and lines culled from the FEI press release - Photos © Dirk Caremans - check out his WCF image gallery on Hippofoto

Charlotte Fry and Glamourdale won the 2025 World Cup Finals in Basel on Saturday night 5 April 2025. The Paris Olympic individual bronze medal winning pair cruised to victory rather unopposed and topped the board with an almost four percent lead to the second placed pair.

Isabell Werth rode her 26th World Cup Final in her career and landed second place, while WCF newcomer Isabel Freese climbed onto the podium for a career highlight third place finish. The 2025 WCF was judged by Michael Osinski (USA), Maria Colliander (FIN), Ulrike Nivelle (GER), Christof Umbach (LUX), and Hans Voser (SUI).

Seal the Deal

Following a convincing Grand Prix win on Fridauy, Fry and the 13-year old KWPN stallion Glamourdale (by Lord Leatherdale x Negro) sealed the deal in the freestyle.  The reigning World Champion and Olympic bronze medallist can now add the prestigious  World Cup Final title to her already glittering resume.

In the absence of her Paris rivals Dalera (retired), Wendy (qualfiied, but focuses on the EDC in Crozet) and Mount St. John Freestyle (didn't do enough CDI-W's to qualify) Fry and Glamourdale were the favourites for the victory after winning three qualifiers in London (GBR), Amsterdam (NED), and ’s-Hertogenbosch (NED).

Riding her Best of Britain freestyle, Fry highlighted Glamourdale's strengths in the canter work and rode full power and expression. He piaffed a bit better than usual, particularly in the rhythm but it wasn't always even. The passage was energetic and powerful. Glamourdale's lower lip was moving throughout the test, but overall he stayed quiet in the contact. The walk part was correct but in the extended he could have more V-moment in the rhythm. The first left double pirouette started out huge, but there was plenty of sit in it. The tempi changes were ground covering. The crowds were clapping along to the final passage in appeciation of the work shown. He lost a little bit of the impulsion in the final piaffe pirouette. The five judges ranked her first unanimously, rewarding her with nine 10s for the artistic part of her test as well as degree of difficulty. 

"This is very special. To win here today is absolutely amazing, and it felt like Glammie loved every second of it," said Fry. “Yesterday, Glammie was definitely a little intimidated by the hall, but today he knew his job," said Fry after her win. "He loves to have all eyes on him, and when the crowd joined in, he seemed to love it even more. This is all a team effort – with everyone at home at Van Olst Horses and all our supporters. Everything came together tonight, this is such a special feeling."

Mission Accomplished

Isabell Werth rode her 26th World Cup Finals and has won five, the last time in 2019 in Gothenburg. Aboard Madeleine Winter-Schulze and Victoria Max-Theurer's 15-year old Brandenburg Quantaz (by Quaterback x Hohenstein) she secured her third consecutive podium finish, having placed third in Omaha (USA - 2023) and Riyadh (KSA - 2024). This year she was second.

“Mission accomplished,” Werth laughed, having already stated ahead of the Final that second place was her goal.

Werth rode her Bonnie Tylor freestyle, one arranged by her loyal in-house composer Michael Erdmann for almost three decades, who passed away unexpectedly in December. She had Quantaz less challenging the contact compared to the Grand Prix; but in the trot extensions the horse clearly leaned on the hand and the walk was mediocre (5. - 6.5). The carefully ridden trot half passes were a highlight, the tempi changes croup high but no mistakes were made.

Over the Moon

Isabel Freese wrote history in Basel with her third-place finish – Norway’s first World Cup Final podium. She beamed with pride after her ride on Total Hope OLD, a 13-year old Oldenburg stallion by Totilas x Don Schufro, owned by Lone Boegh Henriksen (DEN) and Paul Schockemöhle (GER). Both Total Hope's sire, Totilas, and dam, Weihegold, won the World Cup finals themselves in 2010 and 2017, 2018 and 2019.

Freese rode to music by Cher and had highlights in the trot half passes,  In piaffe, the stallion could sit a little more with the hindlegs under the body, the passage work was active. Overall the horse should stay a bit more up in the poll. He has a tendency to get tight in the throat latch, but the contact was supple and steady. The horse performed effortless, straight tempi changes to the music. The ride was very balanced in all movements, all on a rather high level. Scoring 81.850%, Freese landed third place and was visibly overjoyed.

“I’m over the moon, this went beyond all my expectations," she said. 

Five Over 80%

Corentin Pottier (FRA), who tied for fourth in the Grand Prix with Sysojeva, maintained his form. Once again riding as last to go in the class, Pottier  delivered a polished performance aboard his family owned KWPN bred Gotilas (by Totilas x Ferro). A hiccup in the extended canter left their score at 80.415% for fourth place.

Defending World Cup champion Patrik Kittel (SWE) debuted a brand-new Freestyle with the mare Forever Young HRH, a 13-year old Westfalian by Furst Fugger x Don Bosco, owned by Arlette Jasper-Kohl and the rider. They performed to Alphaville’s iconic track ‘Forever Young’ and landed fifth place. Forever Young is a clear leg mover, with a lot of activity in the legs but she moves in a totally horizontal frame without tendency to lift the withers. Kittel rode her with a loose curb rein but the mouth is rather rigid and not truly chewing. The pair received a 80.115% from the judges.

Mares in the Midfield

Bianca Nowag-Aulenbrock (GER) entered the arena and lifted the spirits with her chestnut mare Florine OLD, a 13-year old Oldenburg mare by Foundation x Lauries Crusador xx, owned by her student Elisabeth von Wulffen. With ears pricked and a charming, crowd-pleasing Freestyle, the pair danced to 78.990% and a sixth place in their first World Cup Final. The beautiful, muscled chestnut mare did not stand still in the first horse and the rider strikingly worked with her lower legs. The piaffes were rhythmic but rather slow. The flying changes were very nice, despite a mistake. Perhaps Florine did the best changes in the field so straight, forward and through behind.

Sandra Sysojeva (POL) and her 9-year old Oldenburg mare Maxima Bella (by Millennium x Christ) charmed the audience with a light-footed and electric piaffe and passage tour. A mistake in the one-tempi changes and pirouettes were expensive, and their score of 78.590% saw them slip from fourth in the Grand Prix to seventh in the Freestyle.

Midway

Landing midway in the pack were two riders on 77%. 

Belgian Olympian Larissa Pauluis and her own and the Lepage family's 15-year old KWPN gelding Flambeau (by Ampere x Zeoliet) placed 8th. Pauluis, who trains with long-time coach Eddy Swennen, rode her second back-to-back World Cup Final. The pair rode quite in a high tempo, slightly rushed, but the trot half passes were cadenced and fluent. The piaffes were very  diligent and  rhythmic with good transitions. There was a lack of stretch in the extended walk at the beginning. There was a mistake in the one tempi changes, which she corrected on the joker line.  She scored 77.470%. The individual judges had her beween 6th and 11th place. 

French Olympian Pauline Basquin lately seems to struggle with her seat and position on the 15-year old Zangersheide registered Sertorius de Rima Z (by Sandro Hit x Voltaire). She has difficulties sitting the dark bay in the trot and consistently has flat piano hands with wide elbows. Sertorius is light footed in the trot work with floaty half passes with exemplary bend and flexion, and good trot extensions with the nose out, but the first piaffe was almost non-existent and there were a few blips in the one tempi changes. They got 77.055%.

German born American Kevin Kohmann rode his second, consecutive World Cup Final aboard his mother-in-law Terri Kane's 16-year old Hanoverian Dünensee (by Dancier x Davignon).  The horse began the test rather tight in the neck and gaping, but improved in the course of the freestyle. The extended walk lacked stretch, the piaffe and passage were good. There was one bobble when the horse didn’t catch passage in the transition from canter smoothly

"I’ve never had a horse that I thought could ever take me to the places Denzel has and it’s really an honor to be able to experience moments like this with my best friend in the ring," said Kohmann. "He’s given me everything, and while tonight may not have been our most perfect performance, I could still feel him enjoying every movement and feeding off the energy of the crowd.”

Quick Notes

Carina Scholz and Birgit Kalvelage's 16-year old Oldenburg mare Soiree d'Amour (by San amour x Latimer) placed 11th with 75.415%. She had the mare in an exemplary frame throughout, but the mouth was still not completely content. There was a slight loss of rhythm in first trot extension and not much impulsion. The first piaffe was too much forward and the second had a loss in rhythm at the beginning. The extended walk was excellent, immediately relaxed and marching through the body. 

Borja Carrascosa seemed to have paid the toll for taking Petra Hofmann's 12-year old Westfalian Sir Hubert NRW (by Sir Heinrich x Florestan) across the globe for the World Cup season. He qualified by going from Lerma, Mexico, at the end of October before heading to London, Basel, Gothenburg and Den Bosch between the end of December and mid March). At the Finals his chestnut appeared tired and came deep in the piaffes.  They posted 74.735% for 12th place.

Swiss Jessica Neuhauser got her ticket to the Final as the FEI extra starting place for the rider from the home nation. Aboard Hildegard Riedmaier's 14-year old Danish gelding Rockson (by Rockefeller x Sorento) she placed 13th in her first World Cup Final. 

International Mix

The World Cup Finals brings together a truly international crowd of riders from four continents

American Genay Vaughn and her 14-year old KWPN gelding Gino (by Bretton Woods x Haarlem) had an off-day in the Grand Prix in which he horse had thrown the tongue over the bit. In the freestyle they recovered and placed 14th with 73.765%. Genay trains with her mom Michele as well as with Kathleen Raine.

Australian Mary Hanna won the Pacific League final for her ticket to Basel and flew in her 12-year old KWPN gelding Ivanhoe (by Desperado x Jazz) for the occasion. The pair rode nice passage work that was in nice self-carriage. In the extended walk the horse didn't stretch enough, nor marched. Hanna was digging her heels into the horse to keep the impulsion, but there was a clear loss of rhythm at the end of the left canter pirouette, in which he changed lead. In piaffe the horse could sit more behind.  They scored 72.730%

America's highest scoring pair of the moment, Adrienne Lyle and the 13-year old KWPN gelding Helix (by Apache x Jazz) were almost 10% off from the Kur scores she got in qualifiers in the USA.  Lyle rode her second World Cup final in her career, her first was in 2019 on Salvino. With Helix she rode to tunes of Freedom (George Michael), Stand By Me (Ben E King) and Sweet Child of Mine (Guns 'n Roses). They entered the ring in a very tight frame, but the first piaffe was very nice but in the second he tensed up. In the first trot extension she pulled the head against the chest to hold him. He broke into canter. There was no overtrack nor relaxation in the extended walk. The rider tried to give him a few inches of rein now and then, but the horse remained on edge and the entire two tempi line was broken. The pirouettes would have been nice if the frame was not so short. The horse improved towards the end of the test though. They placed 16th with 71.255%, a score which generated whistling from the crowd while there was applause when the much lower spectator judging score of 65,108% appeared on the board.

Hungarian WCF debutant Aniko Komjathy-Losonczy and her 17-year old KWPN gelding Dior S (by Spielberg x Florestan) closed the ranks in 17th place with 67.095%. The tall grey gelding is such a happy, pleasant looking chap and was in the correct frame. He does the job but scores mainly between 6 and 7 for all the movements. A mistake in the two tempi changes affected the score. 

Photos © Dirk Caremans - check out his WCF image gallery on Hippofoto 

Related Links
Scores: 2025 World Cup Finals
Eurodressage Coverage of the 2025 World Cup Finals