Kira Laura Soddemann and the Hanoverian gelding Einfach Imposant topped the leaderboard in the 5-year old preliminary test at the World Championships for young dressage horses in Verden, Germany, on Thursday noon 6 August 2026.
The second day of WCYH competition at the Hanoverian headquarters in Germany brought some relief in the weather. After a very hot first day the temperatures cooled down to a pleasant 25 c° and a light breeze bringing relief and refreshment to the venue. Ideal weather for horse sport.
Trader Joe's Nut Mix
With five German horses covering the top five places in the ranking of 48 competitors, Germany stamped the division with its breeding and training programme. While yesterday only two KWPN horses were able to claim a direct ticket into the 6-year old final, today the Dutch warmbloods achieved three spots in the 5-year old finals. Danish horses dominated the 6-year old preliminary test but today Denmark's best saw three move to the final, but not as favourites for the title. Great Britain had one horse to the final, but it was ridden by Dutch based British rider Phoebe Peters aboard a Dutch owned but German/Westfalian registered horse.
The mix of countries, flags, nationalities and breeds have always made the FEI WBFSH World Breeding Championships for young dressage horses as diverse as a Trader's Joe bag of nut mix: different kinds of nuts, as well as raisin s and even chocolate chips for your enjoyment: It's fun, delicious, and not so healthy for the heart, just like international high performance dressage sport.
"Simply Impressive"
The 5-year old preliminary test began at 7h30 AM in the morning and was not for the faint-hearted: with 48 horses competing this was a marathon session that felt like surviving Wagner's ring cycle. It took long, the breaks were short, the drama was there and the catharsis took place.
Soddemann on Einfach Imposant BJudges Agnieszka Majewska, Knut Danzberg, Sven Rothenberger, and Hans Voser were tasked with the sorting and they decided that two of the top ranked horses came early in the morning with the winner being the Hanoverian gelding Einfach Imposant B. The gelding, whose name means "simply impressive," is an Escolar x Westernhagen son bred by Daniele Burkhardt-Robert and owned by renowned German horse owner Dr. Peter Brenske. The bright bay gelding was presented by German Kira Laura Soddemann. Einfach Imposant B is a chunky monkey with a very strong hindleg, at times a bit slow behind, but eager to work, and supple in the lateral bending on both reins. The extended walk was excellent with very good, active marching and also in canter, the horse had his engine behind switched on. He showed very nice suppleness in the movements, very good bending and although he's not an eye-catcher lookswise, the radiated quality and strength.
The judges rewarded the horse with 8.8 for trot, 9 for walk, 8.7 for canter, 9 for submission and and perspective for a total of 89.000% and the day victory.
Impi arrived in Soddemann's stable by accident. “At the Verden Elite Auction last autumn, my husband and I were supposed to try out a completely different horse for one of our clients. We did that, and then we looked at a few other horses as well. ‘Impi’ came up pretty late in the lineup, but I liked him right away,” said Soddemann. She rode him and had a really great feeling about him. “Then, luckily, it turned out that our client didn’t get the horse we’d originally had in mind, and so – almost by accident, because he was determined to buy a horse – he ended up buying Impi.”
Lion Heart
Ellen Richter on Lord Löwenherz von BellinThe runner-up was Ellen Richter, twin sister of German professional Leonie Richter, who seems to be following in her sibling's footsteps. While Leonie won silver on Most Wanted Nero von Bellin at the 2025 World Young Horse Championships, Ellen now piloted the Brandenburg registered Lord Löwenherz von Bellin (by Lord Europe x United) to the second place with 87,800%. Bred and owned by Monic Schmidheiny on Gestut von Bellin, the long-legged dark bay gelding showed a very nice, lightfooted trot with lots of knee action. The rein back was late to the marker and there were very big backing steps. The extended walk was lovely and ground covering, ridden with a very (too) loose rein. His marching is so big that he knocks himself on the heels. Also the canter work was very nice, soft footed with round, active strides and plenty of scope off the ground. Richter rode the gelding with a very light contact, with a horse producing the correct amount of foam on the lips, but maybe at time this "lion heart" should have searched the contact a little more. The end halt was not immobile.
The gelding scored a whopping 9.8 for trot, 7.7 for walk, 8.7 for canter and submission and 9 for perspective.
“His fundamental quality is incredible, and I’m very glad that I was able to show that today and that so many people got to see what I’ve felt for a long time,” said Ellen Richter. “He’s a spirited horse and has a strong will, but he’s actually very well-behaved – though sometimes still a bit timid, which causes him to get in his own way. That’s why I was all the happier today that he presented himself so well.”
Turning Heads
Alina Schneider on Weihe's HappinessThe first horse of the day that truly made head turns was the very elegant, feminine Oldenburg mare Weihe's Happiness OLD (by Dynamic Dream x Sir Donnerhall), bred and owned by Christine Arns-Krogman. The black with the refined, spidery legs has Olympic medal winning mare Weihegold (Isabell Werth) as grand dam.
Ridden by Alina Schneider, the black entered the ring and halted crooked at X but then showcased a very light-footed, very cadenced trot in a clockwork rhythm. There was proper lengthening on the diagonal. The halt for rein back was not squared and she backed in a rushed way. The extended walk had huge overtrack, but there was hardly any contact in the bit and her marching could have been more regular on both diagonals. In canter Weihe's Happiness was uphill in every single stride. The simple change was okay, but in the counter canter right she lost a bit of that uphill tendency. The mare was very quick on her feet, willing to work, but overall she could have been more supple in the topline. At the end with the giving and taking of the rein who hardly stretched the neck and nose out.
The judges rewarded the mare a 9.3 for trot, and 8.8 for walk, and 8.5 for canter, 8.2 for submission and 8.8 for perspective.
“Happiness is my favorite because she reminds me so much of Weihegold,” said breeder and owner Christine. “I just think this horse is fantastic because she’s like an updated version of Weihegold and has even more front, more foreleg. What Weihe was missing a bit, this horse has. More foreleg, yet the same gigantic hind leg and the same attitude – that willingness to do whatever the rider asks.”
German Top Five
Alexander Yde Helgstrand on Global AmourFive German bred horses, representing team Germany, landed in the top five, but it was Danish Under 25 rider Alexander Yde Helgstrand who placed fourth on the Oldenburg licensed stallion Global Amour (by Global Player x Furstenball). Bred by Britta Budeus-Wiegert and owned by Helgstrand Dressage, the handsome, well-put together stallion has a very lovely front with good shoulder freedom in trot. He had a ground covering trot on the straight lines, but easily lost the balance in the corners and on the curved lines. Alexander tried to generate more strength and power from behind by collecting the horse a little more in the corners but he's not yet at the right strength level behind for a 100% crips clear rhythm in self carriage. There was a mistake in the rhythm in the second trot lengthening. The horse's mouth was also rather dry instead of seeing a horse chewing on the bit. The walk was absolutely beautiful with super supple marching. The canter had big strides but also here the balance was a little shaky. In the final downward transition to trot, Helgstrand counter-bent the horse to make the transition happen. The pair scored 8.4 for trot, 9 for walk, 8.2 for canter, 9 for submission (?), and 8.8 for general impression. He finished fourth on a total of 86.80%.
Thomas Schulze on Senza Parole FGerman Thomas Schulze rode Christine Feichtinger's home bred and owned Hanoverian mare Senza Parole F (by Secret x For Romance) into the top five with a total of 84.80%. Schulze is too tall for this elegant mare with his legs sticking out far under her belly, but did a good job presenting the horse nonetheless. Her name signifuing "without words" in Italian, this black mare has a gorgeous face and neck but is a little sunken in the back/loins. She was very willing to work and forward going in trot. She walked very well through the body but in canter one wanted to see a little more roundness in her strides. The judges scored the horse 8.6 for trot, 8.8 for walk, 7.9 for canter, 8.5 for submission and 8.6 for perspective.
Mare Power
Denmark's best of the day was mare Soebakkehus Miss Malfoy (by former World Young Horse Champion and now disappeared Hesselhoj Down Town x Sir Donnerhall), bred and owned by Agente Holmsted. The cute Miss Malfoy has already built an impressive list of achievements despite her young age. She is the 2024 Danish Warmblood Elite Mare Champion and 2025 Danish Young Horse Champion. This year 51-year old Grand Prix rider Joachim Thomsen took over the ride in Miss Malfoy and debuted at the WCYH for the first time in his career. Thomsen is married to renowned dressage trainer Rune Willum and rode for Team Denmark at the 2007 European Championships in Turin on Mikado Engvang. Thomsen and Miss Malfoy showed lovely, fluent trot work but the mare was at times too high up in the poll and tight in the neck. In walk the bay achieved huge overtrack but the clarity in the rhythm was iffy. The canterwork was very well balanced and showed already a high degree of collection. In the right counter canter she lost some suppleness in the back and the strides became straighter. The judges rewarded the horse with 8.6 for trot, 8.2 for walk, 8 for canter, 8.5 for submission and 8.4 for perspective. They totalled 83.40%.
Joachim Thomsen on Miss MalfoyThe best scoring KWPN horse was mare Rose-Bel Taonga, a Kjento x Westpoint offspring bred by Willeke Bos and owned by the breeder in partnership with Willem van Kampen. Under Franka Loos the liver chestnut mare placed seventh with 83.00%. She's a nice model but overall in trot there could be a bit more swing in the back, and definitely more bending in the body to the left. The halt for rein back was not square and she refused to back on the aids at first. The extended walk was clear but the overtrack was "only" one to two hooves. The canter work was functional but a little straight legged and the simple change was short with hardly any walk developing. Also in the giving and taking of the reins Rose-Bel did not stretch the neck and reached out to the contact but instead hollowed and curled herself. All considering the 7.9 submission score was rather surprising. The 9 for trot was well earned. She got a 7.3 for walk and 8.6 for perspective.
Quick Notes
Sadie Smith on Real DreamBritish Grand Prix rider Sadie Smith took over the rode on Gert-Jan van Olst's KWPN stallion Real Dream (by Dynamic Dream x Negro) from Charlotte Fry, who is in full preparation for next week's World Championships in Aachen on Glamourdale. The dark bay is a really talented horse for the future: tall, imposing, with a nice frame and body for FEI level work, but today the ride was not that fine-tuned and put together. He hurried in the trot extensions and lost the rhythm. The walk was very nice with good marching through the body. Real Dream has a wonderful quality canter that is consistent in his striding and uphill. In the right counter canter he got a bit too long in the frame and rushed a little. Also the final halt could have been more polished and was a rolling stop. He scored 8.1 for trot, 7.8 for walk 9 for canter, 8 for submission and 8.3 for perspective. His total was 82.40 for 8th place.
Katrine Kraglund on Hamiltons JazzmasterDenmark's Katrine Kraglund and Hamilton Horse's Danish warmblood Hamiltons Jazzmaster (by Jameson x Dante Weltino) slotted in 9th with 82.20%. He showed a lovely frame in trot with a nice, functional way of going through the body. He lost some balance here and there, particularly when he had to shorten the steps. The walk was good, not great and the canter at times got a bit stabby and in the simple change he needed to poo and went against the aids. He did show a lovely giving and taking of the reins with a proper stretch.The judges thought the canter was the best gait though (8.5), while the trot got 7.9, and the walk even 8.0. For submission he got 8.2 and for perspective 8.5.
Dutch Saskia Gerrits-Poel rode her licensed KWPN stallion Ready to Rumble (by Le Formidable x Ampere), bred by H. van Gils, to 10th place with 82.00%. The trot was gorgeous, uphill and elegant, but the rein back was hectic. The walk lengthenings were mediocre with hurried marching. The canter did not have the clear three-beat rhythm at times and in counter canter he became too short and overcollected in the strides. There was no proper stretch in the give and take of the reins. That being said, the black is an eye catcher who could show better gaits if he were ridden more forward, over the back, it seems. Today he got 9.2 for trot, 7.4 (?) for walk, 8.2 for canter ,7.7 for submission and 8.5 for perspective.
More Mares
Merita Hagren on ChantalThe top 12 ranked horses earn a direct ticket into the finals on Sunday and two more mares completed that group.
Finnish Merita Hagren saddled Helgstrand and Von Rosing's Danish warmblood mare Chantal (by Revolution x Hertug), bred by Jane and Erich Bech Jensen. They finished 11th with 81.80%. Chantal is a diva with stunning looks and delightful face and elegant paces. Her walk was active with much overtrack, but in canter she became rather downhill and croup high, but the simple change was well ridden. She received 8.2 for trot, 8.3 for walk, 7.8 for canter, 8.2 for submission and 8.4 for perspective.
Phoebe Peters on McMaryMuch was expected of Kiki Courtelis and Eugene Reesink's Westfalian registered mare McMary (by McLaren x Ampere), bred by Dutchmen Jeroen Slot and Dennis Schurink. The winner of the 2025 Pavo Cup (normally exclusively for Dutch warmbloods, but McMary is IBOP tested), could not entirely convince today but got her ticket to the finals thanks to a stellar trot tour. British Phoebe Peters is the 2015 European Pony Champion and rode the bright bay with much finesse. The trot was super lightfooted, cadenced, and very regular, but in walk the mare easily lost clarity in rhythm, despite two hooves overtrack. There was a hiccup in the canter strike off and the simple change was abrupt. In canter the mare is not as stellar as in trot but stays rather straight legged and showed a more supple stride on the left lead. She got 9.6 for trot, 6.9 for walk, 7.8 for canter, 8.2 for submission and 8.3 for perspective, to finish on 81.60%.
