FEI World Driving Championships for Young Horses in Szilvásvárad, (HUN)

Germany’s Jessica Wächter dominated from start to finish at the FEI Driving World Championships for Young Horses held from 24-28 August 2022. Competing with five horses across the three age categories – 5, 6 & 7 year olds – Jessica’s 2021 5 year old champion, the Hanoverian gelding Dream Catcher 19, showed the same quality and consistency to take the 6 year old title a year on. She was also second in the 5 year old and third in the 7 year old categories.

Only Mario Gandolfo (SUI) stopped the ladies taking all top places when he and Lisby Bastin’s Swiss Freiberger gelding Lemmy-K won the 5 year old class. Scoring 14.95, he was only 0.5 ahead of Jessica and another Hanoverian gelding, Best Buddy 8, who finished on 14.90. Austria’s Lara Krejcerik took third on 14.46 with the mare Rexona W. It was a tight class with 13 horses in the final, finishing with less than a point between the top six places and less than three points between them all.

After the qualifying rounds during the week and Saturday’s Dressage, it looked like the German ladies were going to have it all their way as Jessica went into Sunday’s combined Obstacles and Cones final in first place in both the 5 & 6 year old classes, and Bettina Winkler (GER) led in the 7 year old. But after a more polished round, Mario’s tally pushed him just in front.

Jessica’s consistency shone through the event as she qualified all her five horses for the final. She and Dream Catcher 19 led after Thursday’s first round ‘Aptitude Test’, in which Dressage movements are followed by a Cones course in the same arena. Ending the weekend on 18.49, she was some way ahead of Bettina and the German Sport Horse gelding DSP Balisto on 15.99, while Agnes Paulovics (HUN) and the KWPN stallion L-Grappa-WK won the only medal for the host nation, finishing third on a score of 14.66. The 6 and 7 year old categories each had eight horses in the final.

“Dream Catcher 19 showed outstanding movement, balance and obedience alongside metronomic movement and desire to go forwards, and did so in a calm and relaxed way, gaining several 10s over the week especially for the walk.”

– Andrew Counsell (GBR), Member of the Ground Jury

Keeping the dreams alive, the climatic 7 year old class saw Bettina take the world title with DSP Noble Lady on 17.41, the mare with which she won the 6 year old 2021 World Championship. She was comfortably in front of silver medallist Leslie Berndl (USA) and the KWPN stallion Kareltje who finished on 14.77. Leslie had been down the order after the first qualification round on Wednesday to finish 8^th so had to run again in the second qualification, but a well-marked test meant she gained her place in the final and the judges noted that Kareltje improved as the event progressed. Entering the arena in third position, she pipped Jessica by just 0.13, who took third with the black stallion Ecksternon on 14.64.

Now in its seventh year, Hungary has hosted the Championship since 2015, for the second time at the State Stud in Szilvásvárad. Nine nations, including Norway and Italy, attended with 51 horses. The criteria states that National Federations can have up to ten entries per age category, and an athlete can also drive two horses per category. The event is open to all star rated levels of athlete. 

After the first Aptitude Test, the top 50% competitors qualify for the final and the remaining 50% can run again, with only the top one or two progressing. After the first and second rounds, the final consists of a Dressage test which is marked in the same way, then a combination of Cones and two mobile marathon style Obstacles, which is timed, and marks are also awarded by the judges. 

However, unlike most Driving events where competitors aim for the lowest cumulative penalties, here the judges award their scores out of ten which are averaged to end on one mark, so a higher score is desirable. Marks are given for the different paces, education and potential, with the walk and education having a co-efficient of two. Knocking a ball off will incur a 0.3 penalty which is deducted from the total. The four judges, who work together in the box, consult each other before awarding their marks, doing so in terms of the scales of training. Before the next athlete starts, the PGJ announces the marks with comments.

On the final day, the course did not vary much between the three classes, but another Cones slalom was added for the 6 & 7 year old and the challenges for the horses increased as the Obstacles went from gates A-D for 5 year old, A-E for the 6 year old to A-F for the 7 year old. The older two classes did an opening circuit of the arena to add distance to their round.

The event showcased some rising equine stars who exhibited what can be expected at their age. A wide range of breeds was present demonstrating the versatility of what types can be used as the driven horse. 

“The competition showed a great variety of horses and many different breeds. The important point being what the horse is doing, not its type.” – Andrew Counsell  

The 2023 Young Horse Driving World Championships will be held in France.