Germany has the edge over the other nations and captured its ninth team gold medal at a European Under 25 Championships since the first edition in Hagen in 2016. The 2025 Euros are held on home turf at Ann-Kathrin Linsenhoff's Gestut Schafhof in Kronberg.
A Broader Base
The Under 25 team competition was contested through the Intermediaire II test and the field of riders was split into two groups, the first one going on Wednesday 9 July, the second on Thursday 10 July 2025.
The judges discussing the class after the Inter II finishedGermany was the hot favourite for gold, but three other nations were able to put the pressure on. The Netherlands saw its team reduced to three riders last minute as Quinty Vossers' Inferno suffered a swollen leg the day after the horse inspection. He was withdrawn which left TeamNL with no scratch but the girls did not succumb to the pressure. Great Britain has a power pair in Annabelle Pidgley/Vamos Amigos to significantly pull up a team score, while Switzerland celebrated its first ever U25 team at a Europeans with Tallulah Lynn Nater on Belgian Olympic team horse Flynn as stronghold.
With a broader base of quality riders in general the Under 25 division is finally getting less predictable and more competitive. Many of the combinations in Kronberg would easily be players in the senior ranks, which is promising for the future.
Ninth Gold for Germany
Germany was the overnight leader on Wednesday with 2023 European U25 Champion Felicitas Hendricks and Drombush returning to the U25 ranks after two seasons in the senior division. She posted 71.470% for the high score of the day, assisted by Elisabeth von Wulffen and Triple A's personal best of 70.735%.
Anna Schölermann on Springborgs GuardianOn Thursday German U25 champion Moritz Treffinger and silver medalist Anna Schölermann were assigned the task to bring home the gold. It was not Treffinger but Schölermann who stole the show in the end aboard Springborgs Guardian, an 11-year old Danish warmblood by Hotline x Furst Romancier. The gelding is owned by Wolfgang Kindler, father of Celestine Kindler, who is in Kronberg competing on the German Young Riders team with Quotenkonig. The 24-year-old Schölermann is an assistant rider at Hubertus Schmidt's Fleyenhof and showcased her classical schooling at Schafhof. Her bright bay gelding has a trembling lip at times, but he was still nice and accepting of the contact and rode the gelding with a long neck, not squeezed tight for control. The trot work was soft and supple, the passage carefully ridden. The hindlegs could engage a bit more under the body. The first piaffe showed great uphill intent in front. The extended walk was not so ideal with limited overtrack. The medium canter with flying change at X was ridden conservatively, the tempi changes were correct but the horse dropped a bit in the poll in them. Overall it was a pleasant, correct, soft and elastic ride that was rewarded by judges Isobel Wessels, William Warren, Dr. Vincenzo Truppa, Henning Lehrmann, and Christine Prip with the top score of the day, a personal best of 73.147%. The judges were divided by the ride as the low score was 69.412 (maybe a bit too low) and the high score was 75.441% (too high).
Hendricks and Treffinger celebrateMoritz Treffinger and Gestut Bonhomme's 15-year old Hanoverian stallion Cadeau Noir (by Christ x De Niro) stayed closely on Anna's heels and landed second place. His beautiful black stallion, who was trained to Grand Prix level by Lena Waldmann (now Hassmann), halted squarely, but was not 100% immobile. He was a bit fidgety with his tongue. The half passes were elastic but could have been even more balanced. In the passage the horse stayed rather wide at the base, but was regular. In the first piaffe the left hindleg trailed, the second was much better. The extended walk had good overtrack, but in the collected he ambled. The medium canter with flying change was a highlight, as well as the left extended canter with flying change at the end of the diagonal. The striding in the right pirouette was better. The horse has a rhythmical passage on the final centerline but was a fraction crooked to the left. They scored 72.588% with the judges in unison.
These two scores brought Germany's team total to 217.205 points, more than sufficient for gold.
"I've seen such great young people on this team, I'm thrilled," said German chef d'Equipe Cornelia Albrecht. "They ride really well, they have good horses, but they also bring a lot of character to the table – and that makes this success even more valuable. This isn't about the individual athlete; this is a truly close-knit team – that touches me!"
Silver Effort
Silver for The Netherlands: Dees, De Vries, NoordijkThe Dutch trio put in a brave effort and with three 70+ scoring rides totalled 211.647 points for silver.
Holland's last to go was Kim Noordijk on Jurgen van der Meijden's 11-year old KWPN stallion Joep (by Desperado x Ferro). Noordijk came through the system and debuted internationally on pony Viva La Bam and Brasil in 2014, but it wasn't until 2024 as a U25 rider on Joep that she captured a spot on the Dutch team. At the 2024 Euros in St. Margarethen (AUT) they were Holland's fourth rider, not making it into the Kur final, but this year they are the Dutch number one and placed fifth in the Inter II with 71.206%. Joep is a gorgeous black stallion, well muscled. They began with a beautiful entry and halt, a trot extension with plenty of overtrack but that was a but hurried and very good bending and ground cover in the half passes. Joep has a really lovely passage but in the piaffe he's not very correct: staying wide at the base with the frontlegs stretched forward instead of sitting behind and rising in front. The second piaffe was a bit better. The extended walk was ok, but did not have the biggest marching. The medium canter and change were excellent, but the horse made an unscripted change in the left canter extension. The left pirouette was the best one. The tempi changes were fault-free. They finished with a tidy final centerline.
Kim Noordijk on JoepHolland's second score was 70.294% ridden by Milou Dees on the 15-year old KWPN gelding Francesco (by Florencio x Krack C), while Anky van Grunsven's student Kris de Vries and Rik Teunissen's 11-year old KWPN gelding Jillz La Grande (by Charmeur x Come On) placed 11th with 70.147%. Both of them went on Wednesday.
"Milou already has a lot of experience and really rode for what she was worth," said Dutch chef d'equipe Monique Peutz. "Kris, on the other hand, was riding for the team for the first time, but she wasn't nervous at all. She rode in with an attitude of 'I'll do this'. Very impressive." Then it was up to Kim to get the job done on the second day. "Luckily, I've known Kim for a while. She's very focused, knows exactly what she wants, and how she's going to do it. You can give her a task to ride, and she showed that. We said to each other: even though Quinty is out, we're going for it and certainly not riding differently than usual. Just do what you can, and all three of them did fantastically!"
Bronze for Britain
Bronze for Britain: Pidgley, Gibbs, Lutener, AshtonIt was a neck-to-neck race between four countries for the bronze medal. Great Britain ended up on the third step of the podium with a team total of 207.412 points, while Switzerland was fourth (207.236 points), and Denmark fifth with just a fraction less (207.147). Sweden was right there with them on 206.030 points. This is a testament to the rising quality of riding, horses, and training across Europe.
Annabella Pidgley, who was the 2024 European Under 25 Champion on Charlotte Dujardin's 2021 Tokyo Olympic bronze medal winning horse Gio, has put the chestnut on "holiday" since St. Margarethen and has been focusing on her second Grand Prix horse Vamos Amigos, Cathrine Dufour's team gold and individual silver medal winning ride at the 2022 World Championships. With such a celebrity horse in the stable, a high profile account on social media, and with her stay in Denmark training with Andreas Helgstrand during the one-year suspension of coach Dujardin, all eyes turn automatically to young Pidgley when she enters the arena. In their third year competing at Grand Prix level - alternating between the senior and U25 division - Pidgley and her 13-year old Westfalian gelding (by Vitalis x Hotline) got to know each other and the silhouette has changed. Pidgley has veered away from Dufour's seemingly "zero contact" way of riding to a more constant hold of the reins.
Annabella Pidgley on Vamos AmigosIn the Intermediaire II this did not result in an ideal topline with the horse often too high and tight in the neck and not as free-flowing. The electric Vamos is not an easy horse to ride, so Pidgley's efforts are very brave. The trot extensions had much forearm and freedom in the shoulder, but did not suffice in overtrack and the second one had a break in the rhythm (scores 5.5 - 7.0). There were enough crossing in the half pass. In the passage Vamos is very quick and sharp but he pushed himself high and hollow in the back . In piaffe he was crooked to the right and does not really sit, even though he's very rhythmical and regular. The extended walk barely had overtrack and the rhythm is very compromised (4.0 - 7.0 !!!) The canter strike off was short behind, the medium canter ridden conservatively but the flying change was very nice. There was a mistake in the two tempi changes, the ones were clear. The left extended canter was good. The right canter pirouette was nice and the final passage centerline smooth. Considering the tightness of the neck, the mistakes and the poor walk, it was a surprise to some that 70.441% appeared on the board. The judges were clearly divided with 67.647% as low score and 72.941% as the high score.
Lap of honour for the BritsBritain's second best score was ridden on Wednesday by Harrison Ashton on Henri Ruoste's 10-year old Oldenburg Million Dreams (by Millennium x Sandro Hit). They got 70.000%. Also going on Wednesday was Charlotte Lutener on the 15-year old Full Fusion BS (by Zack x Mooiman). They had the drop score of 65.235%
The third score came from Lilah Gibbs on her 14-year old Hanoverian gelding Dude III (by Dancier x Rubinstein). Her tall, long-legged black gelding is a very athletic horse who showed big trot extensions and half passes, that were a bit rushed. The first piaffe-passage was a real highlight with smooth transitions. The horse also got high in the neck at times. The two tempi's needed to be straighter and there were several bobbles in the one tempi changes and in the half pass right, which affected the score considerably. They posted 66.971%. Gibbs trains with Sarah Millis.
Swiss Rise
Tallulah Lynn Nater on Flynn FRHSwitzerland's sudden rise in the Under 25 division is more than impressive, not only carried by a new star pair on a world class horse (Nater on Flynn) but also by the wonderful riding displayed by all girls.
Trained by Estelle Wettstein, Tallulah Lynn Nater and the 11-year old Hanoverian stallion Flynn (by Fahrenheit x Sir Oldenburg) slotted in third in the Intermediaire II with a personal best of 71.824% and carried Switzerland to a fourth team place. The black stallion is a rather narrow and lean looking horse but so athletic and proving to be an invaluable horse for Nater, who also competes in the Young Riders division. They rode a dead straight centerline and square halt. The half pass left was outstanding, The passage uphill and regular. The horse has improved in his piaffes compared to last year, showing better intention to sit behind and rise in front, especially in the first one. In the second piaffe he leaned too much on the shoulders. Flynn got strong in the bridle in the medium canter, but the flying change at X was big. The right pirouette showed very good collection but the exit lacked some polish. The two's were very nce, in the ones the horse literally seems to skip like a child (he could stay straighter on the diagonal). They finished with a nice final passage.
Felicitas Simoncic on Four Legends KSAustria's Felicitas Simoncic, who trains with Caroline Kottas-Heldenberg, landed 6th place with 71.000%. She brought the 15-year old KWPN bred Four Legends KS (by Wynton x Ferro), who finished fourth at the 2016 World Young Horse Championships in Ermelo and sold at auction to Taiwan for 605,000 euro. The horse stayed in The Netherlands but completely disappeared from the international spotlight. In Holland a string of riders sat on his back. Fortunately the black finally found his forever home with Simoncic in Austria. In Kronberg the not so tall, muscled horse gave a very elegant impression. He has much shoulder freedom which paints a pretty picture in trot. He is very busy with his lips throughout the test but Felicitas regularly gives him the reins to keep the length in the neck. In the pirouettes he climbs in front, the two's were uphill but in the ones three changes to the right appeared shorter.
Cecilia Bergakra on My FriendThe highest ranked Swedish rider was Cecilia Bergakra on Carina Edin's 14-year old Swedish mare My Friend (by Friendship x Troll). The pair stood out with their top half passes and excellent passage. The extended walk had good relaxation and rhythm but not the greatest overtrack. The mare ground her teeth at times. There was a small rhythm error in a trot extension and the one tempi changes were a bit stabbly, but the medium canter with flying change was ridden with a lot of guts. They placed 14th with a personal best of 69?324%.
