The Jöbstl's Bodyguard Retired from Sport

Dressage

Austria

Austrian youth team horse Bodyguard, who carried Paul and Florentina Jöbstl to multiple European Championships, has been retired from sport with a special ceremony at the CDI Salzburg on 5 December 2025.

Bodyguard is a 16-year old Hanoverian stallion by Burlington out of Power Girl JL (by Pik L). He is bred by ZG Frieling.

Bundeschampionate Medal Winner

Owned by Josef Wilbers of Ferienhof Stucker, the chestnut stallion was licensed at the 2011 Hanoverian Stallion Licensing and did his 30-day stallion performance test in Neustadt/Dosse in the autumn of 2012 with 8.45 for dressage and 8.15 for show jumping, totalling 8.41 points.

With Jana Freund at the 2014 Bundeschampionate

He was first competed by Janine Driessen as a 3-year old, but then Jana Freund steered him to bronze at the 2012 Hanoverian Young Horse Championships in Verden and a fourth place at the 2012 Bundeschampionate. A year later he was again third at the 2013 Hanoverian Young Horse Championships in Verden and got silver at the 2013 Bundeschampionate. They went on to score bronze in the 5-year old division at the 2014 Bundeschampionate.

As of 2016 Matthias Bouten began campaigning the stallion and rode him in the developing Prix St Georges horse classes. At the 2017 Nurnberger Burgpokal Finals in Franfurt, they were third. In January 2020 the horse was shown by Heiner Schiergen at small tour and developing Grand Prix level.

Paul Jöbstl

At the start of 2021 the Austrian Jöbstl family leased Bodyguard from Wilbers as Paul's junior rider hope. The pair became 2021 Austrian Junior Riders Champions and wrote history for Austria by winning double bronze at the 2021 European Junior Riders Championships in Oliva Nova.

In 2022 the pair moved to young riders level and went to the European Young Riders Championships in Hartpury where they collected individual test bronze and kur silver.

Florentina Jöbstl

In February 2023 younger sister Florentina Jöbstl took over the ride.

Their international debut was in Gössendorf in April 2025 and after starts in Ornago and Achleiten they were selected on the Austrian team for the 2023 European Junior Riders Championships in Kronberg, where Austria secured historic team silver after a controversial ruling of the OC when the judge at C missed that Jöbstl went off course. Individually the pair was fourth in the individual test and fifth in the Kur.

BY the end of 2023 the pair moved to Young Riders level and in 2024 they showed at the CDI's in San Giovanni, Gössendorf, Olomouc and Achleiten, winning 9 out of 10 tests. They represented Austria at the 2024 European Young Riders Championships, where they finished 12th in the Kur. Florentina and Bodyguard did a similar string of CDi's in 2025 and rode their last international at the European Young Riders Championships in Kronberg, this time finishing 9th in the Kur.

At the Austrian Junior / Young Riders Championships Florentina won silver in 2023 and 2024 and gold in 2025.

Retirement

Bodyguard has now been retired from sport during the CDI Salzburg, where Paul rode him in his final lap of honour.

Eqwo.net reported that the stallion, who was leased by the Jöbstls from Wilbers, has now been acquired by the family and the liver chestnut can spend the rest of his days with them in Kreuttal.