Wandres Puts the Finishing Touch to Germany's Supremacy at 2025 CDIO Compiegne

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2025 CDIO Compiègne

-- press release, edited by Eurodressage

Photos © Eurodressage NO REPRODUCTION ALLOWED / NO SCREEN SHOTS for social media

Germany continued its winning run on Sunday 4 May 2025 at the CDIO Compiegne held in the Grand Parc Equestrian Stadium. After dominating the Nations Cup on Saturday, German Olympic team gold medal winner Frederic Wandres topped the board in the Grand Prix Kur to Music, while German Matthias Rath claimed highest honor in the Grand Prix Special.

A display by Lorenzo, the World-famous equestrian, in front of packed stands, brought the 14th Internationaux de Dressage at Compiègne to a superb conclusion.

Ideal Conditions

Germany is the big winner of the Compiègne’s 2025 Internationaux de Dressage with a grand slam in all the CDIO 5* classes. A member of the Olympic gold medal winning team last summer in Versailles and third in the World Cup qualifier in Basel in January, Wandres and the 15-year-old Oldenburg gelding Bluetooth (by Bordeaux x Riccione) perfectly lived up to his status as favourite. He won the CDIO 5* Grand Prix and repeated his performance on Sunday, obtaining unanimous approval from the judges and a score of 81.240%. ‘

‘I'm very pleased with my test,’’ said the 37-year-old rider. ‘‘I've been partnering Bluetooth for a number of years now. He’s nearly always able to give his best, he never has a bad day. I’ve got confidence in him and he’s got confidence in me. Nobody thought he’d reach this level. But given plenty of time and work, he’s just become better and better and is now my top horse. To start with he was in the shadow of Duke of Britain, but his time to shine has come quickly. The Games were obviously our ‘‘highlight’’. Since then, we’ve continued working on many elements. Together with his owner, we really want to give him time. Compiègne is his first outdoor competition since Versailles. I was here last year with Duke (winner of the Grand Prix) and knew that the conditions would be ideal. The crowd was wonderful and gave their support to everyone."

Basquin Rises to Second Place

After a sixth place in the Grand Prix with 69.413%, French Olympic team rider Pauline Basquin piloted her 15-year old Zangersheide registered gelding Sertorius de Rima Z (by Sandro Hit x Voltaire) to a second place in the Kur with 77.355%.

"The piaffe is still tricky, but I can feel that Sertorius is gradually regaining confidence, and that's the most important thing. There may be a few adjustments to make to this freestyle. The audience applauded during the performance and were very enthusiastic. I felt that the atmosphere carried me. I'm delighted to have given the spectators such enjoyment.’’

Portugal in Pursuit

Portugal demonstrated why it merited its impressive second place on Saturday in the Nations Cup ranking, this time with Maria Caetano who was third on Hit Plus (76.805) and Joao Miguel Torrao who was fourth on Lirio MVL (75.555).

**Rath Wins 5* Grand Prix Special**

Earlier in the day, Germany's Mathias Rath and the Hanoverian licensed stallion Destacado FRH (by Don Juan de Hus x Londonderry) won the Eurovia Grand Prix Special. With a score of 72.511%, he finished ahead of Marlies van Baalen of the Netherlands on Habibi (71.319) and Carina Scholz with Blue Horse Veneziano (70.617).

"I'm pleased with my horse because it was his first Special since his return to competition,’’ confided the former rider of the legendary Totilas. ‘‘It was of importance to do this test here because we're going to the German Championships next, where we'll be competing in the Special. This gives us a lead on what we still need to work on.’’

French Conclusion

Making their debut for the French team, Bernard Bosseaux with Rilkadora Z (66.681) and Caroline Godin with Querida de Hus (65.106) finished in 9th and 14th place respectively. Although France's overall performance at this CDIO 5* event could be described as mixed, with a sixth place in the team competition on Saturday, selector Jean Morel again explained his strategy.

‘‘The horses for the Paris Olympic Games will not be in Los Angeles, four years is a long time. We therefore absolutely must get a new team going and in the process, test new pairs. All nations are doing the same. The World Championships at Aachen in 2026 are the next big goal. We'll need to finish in the top eight to immediately qualify for the 2028 Games and prepare for them serenely."

A Difficult Year, but Well Received by Riders and Audience

Monique Marini, chair of the Compiègne Équestre association, the event organisers, summed up this 2025 edition.

Monique Marini, the driving force behind Compiegne

"It’s thanks to all our partners, both institutional and private, who remain loyal year after year, and the French Equestrian Federation, who supports us, that we are able to continue to organise our competition. But it's getting more and more complicated. It takes a lot of time, work and investment for a small team. Fortunately, our service providers have become friends and we know we can count on them.

The line-up was less impressive this year. It’s frequently the case in a post-Olympic year. But there is also a Nations Cup being organised in Belgium next week, which has deprived us of numerous riders. Nevertheless, all the riders present were happy to be in Compiègne. We’re an association. We’ve always tried to make the riders and everyone present on the site feel comfortable. This positively reflects on the atmosphere of the competition.’’

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