The Swiss team will lead the way as the final leg of the Samsung Super League with FEI series gets underway at the Real Club de Polo in Barcelona, Spain tomorrow afternoon.
The draw, made this afternoon, is as follows: 1, Switzerland; 2, Sweden; 3, Ireland; 4, Germany; 5, The Netherlands; 6, USA; 7, Spain; 8, France; 9, Great Britain.
It has been a difficult week at the Spanish venue with heavy rain throughout the first two days of the show. "We have had some bad weather, yes, but it was not the Polo Club who organised that, it was someone else!" said Show Director Hans-Peter Vogelsanger. Everything possible has been done to ensure the best possible conditions for tomorrow's big event however and Dutch Chef d'Equipe, Rob Ehrens, complimented the organisers - "We had a lot of rain but on the first day but the course designer did a good job - we had only eight fences and ten jumps in total so that kept the ground in good condition except for the take-off and landing at fences. Then one class was cancelled yesterday and that was a good decision. The ground was acceptable in the Grand Prix although there were some problems. Today however I was really surprised because it is so good that we may need to put some water on the course for tomorrow!" he joked.
The USA are defending champions, having won the 2005 title in style, but Chef d'Equipe George Morris had some worrying moments over the last few days when rider Laura Kraut was taken ill. Kraut and the mare Miss Independent are crucial to the US effort but an excruciating headache saw her hospitalised on Thursday and she was only released yesterday afternoon. "Laura had a very bad migraine and had to go to hospital, but she's feeling much better now and will be on the US team tomorrow" the American team manager confirmed today.
It is all to play for as the competition begins tomorrow afternoon and as newly-appointed FEI Secretary General, Michael Stone, said "the Samsung Super League is very tight this year, we have a situation in which any one of four teams could possibly be relegated. At the top end of the leader-board it's still pretty open, the Germans are in the lead and look strong but George (Morris) will be working hard to stop the money going elsewhere".
At the bottom end of the table the tension is palpable. Just 10 points separate the last four teams, Switzerland carrying 27.125 points, The Netherlands with 21.125, Sweden with 19.125 and the Irish on 17.0. Six of the eight Super League team managers named their final selection for tomorrow's competition at today's draw/press conference but Ireland's Robert Splaine and Jean-Maurice Bonneau from France were not prepared to do so until the last moment. The line-out for the USA will be Margie Engle, Laura Kraut, McLain Ward and Beezie Madden while Christian Ahlmann, Marco Kutscher, Rene Tebbel and Marcus Ehning will be in action for Germany. The Swedish team has been affected by injury to Royne Zetterman's top horse Isaac so the line-up there will be Maria Gretzer, Peder Fredricson, Lotta Schultz and Rolf-Goran Bengtsson while The Netherlands are armed with their FEI WEG gold medal winning squad of Piet Raymakers, Jeroen Dubbeldam, Albert Zoer and Gerco Schroder. For Switzerland, Christina Liebherr will lead the way followed by Niklaus Schurtenberger, Markus Fuchs and Werner Muff while John and Michael Whitaker, Tim Gredley and William Funnell complete the British selection. At this last leg of the series the host country also sends out a team, without collecting any Super League points, and the Spanish side consists of Cayetano Martinez de Irujo, Alvaro Munoz Escassi, Susana Garcia Cereceda and Luis Alvarez Cervera.
After yesterday's early-evening jump-off competition, with the declaration deadline looming, both Splaine and Bonneau made their final decision so, for the second year in succession, Capt Shane Carey and Billy Twomey will be members of an Irish squad desperately struggling to keep their country's Super League hopes alive and they will be joined by Marie Burke and Cameron Hanley on this occasion. The French side will include Pierre Jarry, Julien Epaillard, Stefan Lafouge and Roger-Yves Bost and for Lafouge there is an extra edge as the day begins. A special prize of CHF 25,000 is on offer to the Leading Rider at the end of the Samsung Super League with FEI 2006 series and the Frenchman has a one-point lead over Ireland's Cameron Hanley and Germany's Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum going into the last round. The German rider is not competing in Barcelona but Hanley is, and he is on form, so Lafouge will need to be on top of his game in order to secure the new Leading Rider title.
SAMSUNG SUPER LEAGUE WITH FEI 2006 - LEADERBOARD AFTER ROUND 7 AT DUBLIN:
1. Germany - 45.125
2. USA - 36.0
3. France - 34.0
4. Great Britain - 28
5. Switzerland - 27.125
6. Netherlands - 21.125
7. Sweden - 19.125
8. Ireland - 17.0
SAMSUNG SUPER LEAGUE - NATIONAL PRIDE, INTERNATIONAL PASSION!
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