RIYADH, Saudi Arabia--Patrik Kittel on Touchdown made history on Friday, April 19 as only the second Swedish rider to win the FEI Dressage World Cup Final, which was held in Riyadh.
Anna Marek on Fayvel (Photo by Dirk Caremans)Anna Marek on Fayvel was the highest placed U.S. rider at the end of the final day of dressage competition, scoring 74.518 percent in the FEI Grand Prix Freestyle for ninth place.
Rittel was the very last rider to compete on a night when the sport had plenty of twists and turns, and he nailed it with the performance of a lifetime, putting Denmark’s Nanna Skodborg Merrald on Blue Hors Don Olymbrio into second place and German superstar Isabell Werth into third on DSP Quantaz.
“I cannot believe it, seriously." said Kittel. "My trainer Louise (Nathhorst) won it the first time for Sweden and I’ve won it for Sweden again. I just want to thank everyone for supporting us,I’m very overwhelmed.”
The contest could hardly have been closer, with just 0.257 percentage points separating the top three.
Reigning World Champion, Great Britain’s Lottie Fry, on her Tokyo Olympic ride Everdale, after winning Wednesday’s Grand Prix, looked set to win again.
BUT, AS Fry prepared to enter the arena, Ground Jury President, Denmark’s Hans Christian Matthiesen, drew the rider’s attention to an issue in the horse’s mouth.
An FEI statement tonight explained….
British athlete Charlotte Fry and her horse Everdale were eliminated from the Grand Prix Freestyle competition today at the FEI Dressage World Cup Final in Riyadh (KSA).
A minor bleed originating from the front gum mucosa was found in the mouth of the horse by the Judge at C, and in accordance with Article 430.7.6 of the FEI Dressage Rules, this results in elimination.
Elimination under this rule does not imply there was any wrongdoing but the rules are in place to protect the welfare of all competing horses.
So suddenly the hot favourite was out of the picture.
Werth, a legend in her own lifetime who was chasing the sixth World Cup title of her sparkling career but her stallion, DSP Quantaz, was edgy in the Grand Prix two days ago, and the 14-year-old horse again found it very challenging as the seven-time Olympic gold medallist explained.
“It was very hard for him because he was really a bit scared about the advertising screens and also the people in the white clothes," said Werth. "It was really hard for him to concentrate! But he was really with me and he tried his best.”
Last to go, Kittel scored 81.661, just fractionally ahead of Skodborg Merrald at 81.661 to win.
"I think this moment is something I will never forget!" said Kittel. “To stand here as World Cup champion! You always hope, you always want to win, but to actually win??!! That’s just so awesome!"
"It’s such fun when you have three on the podium with 0.257 between them, it was very close and it was very exciting!" said Werth.
For the Americans, Ben Ebeling on Indeed was 13th with a 72.511 percent, while Kevin Kohmann and Duenensee were 14th with a 72.364 percent.
As Marek has previously pointed out, she only started competing Fayvel in CDIs this year as Fayvel was the primary mount for his owner, Cynthia Davila, who is a longtime client of Marek’s.
After the training of the Grand Prix movements came so easily to Fayvel, Davila encouraged Marek to give it a shot with the result being a qualification to represent the U.S. at an FEI World Cup Final.
“My ride today on Fayvel was honestly just so fun."said Marek. "I was first into the arena and really wanted to get everyone excited and start off with a bang. I swear he knew that it was freestyle day. He was warming up all excited and he rode the best he has been all week today. He just loves the freestyle. The venue was awesome, and it was a very cool experience to ride in that stadium. For me, it was a great first World Cup experience and hopefully I’ll be able to do more in the future.”
Also taking on his first FEI World Cup Final and following in his father Jan’s footsteps, Ben Ebeling on Indeed, improved their overall marks from their FEI Grand Prix test on Wednesday to finish with a solid 72.511 percent in his final appearance in Riyadh.
Ebeling was given strong marks for the artistic score, including an 81 percent.
Ebeling has had the ride on Indeed, a 2008 Swedish Warmblood mare, for a few years after taking the reins over from Jan, with the pair earning several career firsts together along the way.
For Kevin Kohmann, the experience and journey of competing at the Grand Prix level with Duenensee has been one years in the making.
Kohman scored 72.364 percent, with goals of representing the U.S. more in the future.
