The Samsung Super League with FEI Final which will take place in Barcelona, Spain on Sunday next has attracted a world-class field and promises to be a thriller. And, for the very first time, the brand new Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games Kentucky 2010 fence will be in use. Designed to resemble the white-rail fencing so familiar to visitors to the horse-loving US state, the subtle, stylish obstacle consists of planks with a gate filler underneath and surrounded by white railings. With the World Equestrian Games (WEG) in Aachen just completed, equestrian sport is already turning its focus to the road that leads to
Kentucky in 2010....
After four victories in the current Samsung Super League with FEI series - at the opening leg in La Baule and on their home turf at Aachen in May, in Lucerne in early June and then again in Dublin last month - Germany holds a commanding nine-point lead and looks set to take the 2006 title. However at the other end of the league table, the stage is set for a fierce battle between Sweden and Ireland who are clinging on desperately to their Super League status. Just over two points separate these two nations, while the recent WEG gold medalists from The Netherlands are not entirely out of the danger zone either. They are only four points ahead of the Irish at the bottom of the table and, with double-points up for grabs in this Sunday's deciding round, they need to stay sharp in order to avoid a bizarre twist to the end of their nations' cup season.
Germany took team bronze in Aachen where The Netherlands reigned supreme ahead of the USA in silver medal position but the bronze medalists had been much-fancied to make it a hat-trick of world championship wins prior to the event. So success this weekend would go some way toward making up for that, and the German selectors have taken no chances when choosing their Barcelona side. In a formidable line-up Marcus Ehning and Christian Ahlmann, both members of the bronze medal winning WEG team, will be joined by Rene Tebbel and reigning European Champion Marco Kutscher and they will be a tough bunch to beat. However the Americans are sending their full WEG squad of Margie Engle, Laura Kraut, McLain Ward and Beezie Madden - the latter listed only with her Aachen silver medal winning partner Authentic who, after five spectacular days of competition, was still jumping superbly on the final afternoon. Whether WEG will have taken its toll on the American horses remains to be seen, but the defending Samsung Super League with FEI title-holders will not be giving up their crown easily, and an interesting pattern would be established if the US claimed the title again this Sunday because the previous title-holders from France did the double over the first two Super League seasons in 2003 and 2004.
The French lie third, and are just two points behind the Americans. They enjoyed a single victory this season, at Rome in May, but should never be under-estimated. Chef d'Equipe, Jean Maurice Bonneau, has a completely different side to the one that finished 11th at the WEG, employing instead three of the team that were fifth in the penultimate leg of the Samsung Super League with FEI series in Dublin last month.
They could only count three scores that day when Jacques Bonnet and Gracieux Ardent were eliminated in both rounds but Stefan Lafouge who was double-clear with Gabelou des Ores has been given the call-up along with Pierre Jarry and Julien Epaillard while Jean Marc Nicolas will also be in action - Jarry, Epaillard and Nicolas were all on that winning team in Rome.
Like the French, the British enjoyed one win in the current series when coming out on top on their home ground at Hickstead at the end of July and that boosted their position sufficiently to leave them in fourth
place going into the final stages. Michael Whitaker could be forgiven for feeling a bit jet-lagged after following his WEG effort with another tough week at Spruce Meadows in Calgary, Canada but he is named in Derek Rickett's Barcelona side along with his brother John, William Funnell and rising British star Tim Gredley who showed great maturity when coping well with the rigours of Aachen.
Next in line are the Swiss in fifth. So impressive when winning in Rotterdam in June they then took a real nose-dive when last at Hickstead the following month and again at Dublin in August. Chef d'Equipe Rolf Grass has made a slight alteration to the team that took the last Olympic qualifying spot when fifth in Aachen, adding Steve Guerdat and Markus Fuchs to his selection that also includes Christina Liebherr, Niklaus Schurtenberger and Werner Muff. And he will be hoping for a steadier performance than he has seen in the latest Samsung outings even though Switzerland appears to be in little danger of crashing out of the series with 27.125 points to their credit to date.
The Dutch must have their heads in the clouds after their amazing Aachen gold medal winning performance but they need to come back to earth this weekend to ensure they keep their place in the prestigious Samsung Super League with FEI series next season. In the competition offering double-points this Sunday their two-point lead over the Swedes and four-point lead over the struggling Irish will not count for much so, despite all the glorious celebrations, they need to maintain their focus and Rob Ehrens will be relying on his full WEG squad of Piet Raymakers, Jeroen Dubbeldam, Albert Zoer and Gerco Schroder along with Harrie Smolders to do just that.
So what about Sweden in second-last place? It all fell apart for them as a team in Aachen where they finished 12th, but Henk Nooren has made only one change to his squad with Malin Baryard-Johnsson side-lined as Maria Gretzer, Rolf-Goran Bengtsson and Royne Zetterman are joined by Peder Fredricson and Lotta Schultz. The Swedes know what it is to endure relegation having fallen out of the Super League during its inaugural 2003 season and they don't want it to happen again. Last at the opening leg in La Baule they finished fifth in Aachen and third in Rotterdam but at Rome, Hickstead and Dublin they prowled around amongst the bottom three and, as the last-placed Irish know only too well, that is not a good place to be.
Dogged by rider and horse problems all season the Irish face the Barcelona test this weekend under incredible pressure and, to add further fuel to the already blazing fire, they lost Shane Breen and World Cruise last week. Breen's 11 year old gelding, by Cruising, was brilliant in the Super League in Aachen in May where he lowered just one fence over two rounds but seemed to go off the boil a little toward the middle of the season before coming back out to make a big impression at Dublin Horse Show. The horse was ill on arrival in Aachen for the WEG; however after spending a night in a veterinary clinic went on to produce two good jumping performances before fading again. A lung infection was eventually diagnosed, and because antibiotics are being administered it was decided that, even though the horse seems to have made a full recovery already, he should not be asked to jump again so soon "for welfare reasons". Breen however will still be in Spain to lend his support to Cameron Hanley, Marie Burke, Billy Twomey, Cian O'Connor and Captain Shane Carey. The latter three, joined by Breen, performed something only just short of a miracle when helping Ireland to survive in the 2005 Samsung Super League with FEI final and although it may seem impossible that they can do it again, if they don't it won't be for lack of trying.....
And, after all, they finished only just outside an Olympic qualifying place at the WEG when slotting into sixth while at their last Super League outing in Dublin they were a creditable third. On that afternoon, Irish team manager Robert Splaine said "up until now we have been lacking consistency but in Hickstead we made a great comeback in the second round and I have no doubt that we can overtake both Sweden and The Netherlands in Barcelona". Time will tell......
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!
The eighth and final leg of the series will take place at the Real Club de Polo Barcelona, Spain from 14 to 17 September. Show President is Joaquin Calvo Jaques, Show Director is Hanspeter Vogelsanger - email hanspeter"@hpwood.com, and Press Officer is Isabel Suter - email isuter@rcpolo.com. WEBSITE www.csiobarcelona.com.
SAMSUNG SUPER LEAGUE WITH FEI : 2006 CALENDAR OF EVENTS:
ROUND 1 - La Baule (Fra) 4-7 May; ROUND 2 - Aachen (Ger) 17-21 May; ROUND 3, Rome (Ita) 25-28 May; ROUND 4 - Lucerne (Sui) 1-4 June; ROUND 5 - Rotterdam (Ned) 22-25 June; ROUND 6 - Hickstead (GBR) 26-30 July; ROUND 7 - Dublin (Irl) 9-13 August; ROUND 8 and FINAL - Barcelona (Esp) 14-17 September.
You can access all the latest Samsung Super League news and information on website www.samsungsuperleague.com and don't forget that BIOGRAPHIES on all riders competing in the series are available at http://bios.horsesport.org.
Want to know more? You can check the full RULES for the Samsung Super League series on the FEI website, www.horsesport.org - section jumping/rules.
The Samsung Super league consists of the eight most prestigious horse shows at which the world's eight best national teams compare their merit. The Super League is connected to the Samsung Nations Cup series through a promotion/relegation system at the end of each season.
Samsung Electronics, one of the world's largest electronics companies, is committed to supporting international sporting events thereby returning corporate profits to the public and working towards a more harmonious and equitable society.
For more information:
Contact FEI Communications, Malina Gueorguiev,
m.gueorguiev@horsesport.org or consult FEI website www.horsesport.org.
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