Werth and Wendy Back on Track, Win Warm-Up Grand Prix at 2025 German Championships

Shows

2025 German Dressage Championships - Balve (GER) 12 - 15 June 2025

- Text © Eurodressage (this article expresses Eurodressage's' eye-witness account and opinion about the competition)

In their first start of the 2025 show season, Isabell Werth and her Olympic silver medal winning mare Wendy are back on track, winning the warm-up Grand Prix test at the 2025 German Dressage Championships in Balve on Thursday afternoon 12 June 2025.

Road to Crozet

The German Nationals are the first of two trials for German team selection for the European Championships in Crozet in August. Starting in Balve is, in principle, mandatory for team consideration.

Eighteen combinations were entered and seventeen competed in the Grand Prix. Ingrid Klimke and Vayron withdrew after the stallion had a colic scare and was transported to the equine clinic for observation. Fortunately his condition improved and on Friday the horse returned home to Klimke's barn in Münster.

Temperatures went from 19 °C on Wednesday to 30 °C on Thursday and this might have affected some horses. While the crowds stayed home for day one of the Dressage Nationals, Germany's best were all there for the title match. The Grand Prix serves as a warm-up round/qualifier for the Special. Medals are won in the Special and a separate set can be won in the freestyle.

An all-German panel of judges officiated with Henning Lehrmann, Elke Ebert, Ulrike Nivelle, Evi Eisenhardt, and Knut Danzberg on the job. While everywhere else in the world scores have dropped considerably in the wake of judging reform to give more weight to harmony and lightness as part of the animal welfare debate. At the German Nationals, however, scores soared as much as the temperatures, but that's nothing new as patriotic scoring has always been on the Balve menu.

Wendy Back on Track

Werth was back in her usual spot on the order of go, the last one to ride into the arena with her best horse, and Werth delivered a very confident ride on a fit and willing Wendy. After a spectacular Olympic year in 2024, the mare was supposed to have her 2025 show debut in Mannheim but got withdrawn because of a swollen leg. In Balve the 11-year old Danish warmblood mare Wendy (by Sezuan x Soprano) appeared for duty.

They began their test with a calm, first trot extension with barely one hoof overtrack (score 7.4!). The half passes had much crossing. In the rein back she did not halt square and dove deep (6.8). The first piaffe-passage was very sweet with smooth transitions. The mare has curiously developed a habit of sneezing in the piaffe. The highlight of the test was maybe the extended walk with a clear V-moment in the rhythm and good overtrack. The collected walk was almost not on the bit. The second passage was rhythmical but flexed to the right. The mare also sneezed in the two tempi changes but made no mistakes. The extended canter was excellent. There was much ground cover in the zig zag, but there was a mistake in the ones (4.5). The pirouettes were tiny, but maybe did not have the best bending round the inside leg. The final centerline was really lovely with super smooth transitions in and out of piaffe (sneezing). The final bit of passage became crooked to the right though (8.5). Overall it was a very confident test, maybe the mare could be a fraction lighter in the contact. She still seems to rely a bit on the support of the rider's hand.

The judges rewarded the test with 78.380%. The high score was 79.400, the low score 77.60%. All five judges had Werth and Wendy first.

Wandres On A Mission

Paris Olympic team medal winner Frederic Wandres has also been sparing his 15-year old Oldenburg gelding Bluetooth (by Bordeaux x Samarant). He showed in Basel in January, in Compiegne in May and now in Balve. The rider has been working hard on getting his tall bay gelding in better self carriage and he is reaping the fruits of his work particularly in the first half of the test.

Wandres went "all in" in riding very daring trot extensions and big trot half passes, but then could have collected a bit more in the corners. In the rein back, Bluetooth dragged his feet .The first passage was a bit hectic, but the piaffe had good sit, although it was slightly tense. The extended walk had two hooves overtrack. The collected walk was a bit tight in the back. The second passage was better. The second piaffe again showed good taking of the weight behind, but there was a slight loss of balance. All tempi changes worked but the rider was swinging in the saddle a lot. The zig zag was fault-free. The extended canter was powerful. Wandres rode quite large pirouettes but there was cleaner striding. On the final centerline Bluetooth got wide behind in the piaffe at X. The final passage was energetic, but could have been a bit more collected. Overall it was a ride with a lot of energy and one clearly showing a mission.

They placed second with 76.700% . Their high score was 782.00%, the low score 75.800%

Hemmer Knocking at the Door

With the retirement of Olympic champion Dalera, a spot has freed up on the German team and the rider who has been knocking at the door the loudest for this place is Katharina Hemmer with the American owned Denoix PCH (by Destano x Pik Noir). The 13-year old gelding has really come of age and the pair is getting more solid as time goes by. Hemmer has a lovely seat, a nice contact with the bridle.

The 13-year old chestnut was always soft and supple and followed his rider's aids to the T. The first passage was not collected enough though and in the first piaffe he seemingly crossed behind and travelled forward, but both the piaffe and passage improved along the way. The extended walk was ok, but the horse did not show the most ground covering march. The second passage and piaffe were a bit better, but still not totally in the collection and balance one wants to see. The tempi's went well, the zig zag was good, the left pirouette was the best one. They finished the ride with a tidy final centerline. In the piaffe at X the left hind leg swung a bit out.

They scored 75.160% for a third place, which puts them in a good place towards the CDIO Aachen and team selection.

Push Button Ready

Months after retiring Dalera, Jessica von Bredow-Werndl is back in team contention with Diallo, Annette Göbelsmann-Schweitzer's 10-year old Hanoverian by Dancier x Floriscount who was made push button ready for Grand Prix by Uta Gräf. The new pair easily gelled and after a fourth place at the CDI Hagen in April (69.891%), their scores climbed over seventy with a 73.391% Grand Prix win at the CDI Munich on home turf (Werndl's farm in Aubenhausen is on the outskirts of Munich).

In Balve, Werndl and Diallo began their ride with huge trot extensions, which were a bit running. There was good crossing in the half passes but they need to flaw a bit more. The halt for rein back was not square, but he reversed with big steps, though not straight (6.2). In the first piaffe Diallo was not really sitting with the hindlegs moving under the body but the rhythm was good. The extended walk showed active marching, but not the biggest overtrack. In the collected walk the horse was a bit distracted. The second piaffe-passage were ok, but still need more polishing. In the canter work Diallo get a bit stiff in the back and hectic (losing clarity in the stride) but remains very obedient and willing. The zig zag was ok, the one tempi's were straight but not very ground covering. The right pirouette was the best one. On the final centerline Diallo got slightly wide in the piaffe and swayed in the final passage, but overall the ride was willing, forward, and had plenty of potential for the future.

Werndl and Diallo placed fourth with 73.920% and has put herself in the running for team selection, but Sönke Rothenberger and Fendi were not far off (73.160%) and Ingrid Klimke and Vayron cannot be ruled out.