FEI World Cup Driving in Mechelen

Gert Schrijvers won the FEI World Cup Driving competition of Mechelen, Belgium. Encouraged by the enthusiastic crowd in the sold out Nekkerhal, Schrijvers drove his team of Arabo Friesian sport horses fluently through the course, designed by German course designer Falk Bhnisch.

Since the Series was created three years ago, it is the first time that Schrijvers wins the World Cup. By winning in Mechelen, Schrijvers has climbed to the second place in the standings, which is led by Michael Freund. Germany's Rainer Duen, driving his first World Cup event of this season, made up for his elimination in the warm up competition by driving the only clear round of the evening, and came second. The Swiss driver Werner Ulrich, winner of the warm up competition, took the third place, driving his team of Swiss horses. Ulrich now owes the third place of the standings and has, like Schrijvers and Freund, two more competitions to go. Tomas Eriksson from Sweden passed the finish line two seconds faster than the winner of the World Cup, but the double World Champion knocked three cones down and dropped to the fourth place.

The next World Cup competition will place in Leipzig, Germany, on 25 January 2004.

Created in 2001, the Driving World Cup has provided an innovative new style of competition for indoor events, with courses combining marathon and cone driving obstacles. The 2003/2004 season of the World Cup includes seven events with eight competitions: Stuttgart (GER), Stockholm (SWE), Mechelen (BEL) in 2003; Leipzig (GER), two competitions in Vigo (ESP), 's-Hertogenbosch (NED) and Gteborg (SWE) in 2004.

The winner of the first two editions of the World Cup was Michael Freund (GER).
Complete standings available at www.worldcupdriving.com or www.horsesport.org

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