Germany wins equestrian jumping world title in Aachen as Deußer seals gold

German team secures world title

The German show jumping team secured the world championship gold medal on Friday evening at the World Equestrian Championships in Aachen. Competing in front of between 40,000 and 45,000 spectators in the sold-out stadium, the host nation established an unassailable lead after three of its four riders completed their final rounds. Daniel Deußer, riding Otello, delivered a decisive clear round to confirm the victory before the final competitor entered the ring. The triumph marks Germany's first world championship team gold medal since the 2010 competition in Lexington, Kentucky, and the fourth team gold in the country's history. Belgium took the silver medal, while Great Britain earned the bronze medal.

The wait is tough. That is also different from other tournaments where riders often have four or five horses with them and are busy throughout the day.

Performances in the final round

Germany entered Friday's floodlit final round in first place after logging seven clear rounds across eight rides on Wednesday and Thursday, holding a narrow advantage over the United States. Marcus Ehning opened the decisive round on Coolio with his third consecutive clear ride of the championships across 14 obstacles. Sophie Hinners, making her world championship debut on the gelding Singclair, avoided any knockdowns over the 580-meter course but collected one penalty point for exceeding the 87-second time limit. Deußer followed with a third clear round, allowing Germany to secure the title before anchor rider Richard Vogel incurred two time penalties on United Touch. The team celebrated the win nearly an hour before the final competitor finished the competition.

Singclair jumped fantastically again, that is a completely gigantic feeling.

I am fascinated by my horse, how it performed over these three days here. That is really incredible.

Roster adjustments before Aachen

The German lineup underwent late changes in mid-July when André Thieme, the 2021 European champion and 2024 Aachen Grand Prix winner, withdrew from the squad. Thieme pulled his horse Chakaria from consideration after noticing hesitation at the water jump during a tournament in Falsterbo, Sweden. National coach Otto Becker selected the 52-year-old Ehning to replace Thieme rather than Olympic champion Christian Kukuk and his horse Checker. Kukuk had expressed dissatisfaction with Becker's selection after winning the London Grand Prix shortly before the championships. Becker, aged 67, had previously coached the gold-medal-winning German team in Lexington in 2010 when Ehning was also on the squad.

I noticed in Falsterbo that Chakaria is currently not jumping the water ditch with the certainty she normally shows. In the interest of my horse and the team, I therefore decided against competing at the World Championships.

Olympic qualification for Switzerland

The Swiss team missed out on a podium finish after accumulating penalty points during the team final. Steve Guerdat delivered a clear round on Dynamix de Belheme, but Martin Fuchs on Conner Jei recorded four faults, Gaëtan Joliat on Chelsea received eight faults, and Jason Smith on Picobello van't Roosakker added six penalties. Switzerland needed two fewer knockdowns to overtake Great Britain for the bronze medal. Despite missing their first world medal since 1994, the Swiss squad achieved their primary goal of qualification for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Guerdat, the 2012 Olympic champion and 2024 Olympic silver medalist, remains tied for first place in the individual standings heading into Sunday's medal final.