„Tiemeyer x Hetzel Young Horse Masters“: Alain Jufer and Sophie Hinners win the finals
Outstanding sport was seen last weekend at the "Tiemeyer x Hetzel Young Horse Masters," the most highly endowed tournament for top young show jumping horses, with a total prize of €150,000, held at Holger Hetzel's equestrian center in Goch, Lower Rhine.
The €75,000 final for seven- and eight-year-old show jumping horses was secured on Sunday afternoon by the current Swiss show jumping champion Alain Jufer. Riding his gelding F Ones Son MM, Jufer, the last to go in the jump-off, delivered the fastest clear round in 43.98 seconds. Even seasoned international competitors like Maurice Tebbel (Emsbüren) and Laura Klaphake (Mühlen-Steinfeld) could not surpass him. Tebbel, riding his Cornet Obolensky offspring Crazy EP, finished second with a clear round in 54.44 seconds. Laura Klaphake, in third place, completed her penalty-free round on the Belgian stallion Quizano VDL in 45.67 seconds.
Once again, Sophie Hinners (Pfungstadt) stood out in the final competitions for the five- and six-year-old horses in Goch. In the final for five-year-olds on Sunday afternoon, Hinners faced the challenge of being one of the first riders in the jump-off, which featured 16 starters with clear rounds in the regular round. Nevertheless, she delivered the fastest clear round with her Holsteiner stallion Mini Million, a descendant of Million Dollar. The second and third places went to the Irish rider Diarmuid Howley with the Holsteiner mare Momo VA and Johannes Ehning (Stadtlohn) with the Holsteiner stallion Pétrus, making it a Holsteiner sweep for the top three medals.
Hinners had already won the €50,000 final for six-year-old show jumping horses on Saturday afternoon. Riding the Holsteiner Uriel son Urika, she posted the fastest clear round in the jump-off, which nine of the 41 pairs qualified for the final had reached, completing the course in 38.70 seconds. Katrin Eckermann (Füchtorf) narrowly missed out on the win, finishing second with the Westphalian mare Sascinora NRW with a clear round in 39.07 seconds. Felix Haßmann (Lienen) placed third with Casablanca AWZ, also with a clear round, in 39.75 seconds.
The "Flanders Foal Auction" for show jumping foals also proved successful on Saturday evening. Nearly 30 foals were sold at an impressive average price of €28,000. The highest bid of €74,000 was achieved by a colt foal by Ermitage Kalone out of a Conthargos dam.
Host Holger Hetzel was thrilled with the performances seen over the weekend: "We've seen several young horses here that could cause a stir in the Grand Prix at the CHIO in Aachen or international championships in the coming years. The final for seven- and eight-year-old horses showcased show jumping at the highest level. With the fourth edition of the tournament next year, I want to expand this unique event even further. Therefore, the prize money in the Grand Prix for seven- and eight-year-old horses will be increased from the current €75,000 to €100,000.
