Tuesday, 02 July 2013 Medal winners at four-star event

Olympic, World and European Champions: stars checking in

The four-star show jumping premiere at the GLOCK HORSE PERFORMANCE CENTER from 4 to 7 July is indeed an attraction: 27 nations are represented, world famous riders are competing and the names alone are music to equestrian fans’ ears! 

Seven Olympic, seven World and eleven European Champions are riding at the GHPC as well as three World Cup winners. Also high on the list of big names will be the runner-up World and European champions, silver and bronze medal winners at Olympics, World and European championships. 

Germany’s Lars Nieberg holds not one but two Olympic golds as well as World and European Championship titles. The two Brazilians Alvaro Affonso de Miranda Neto and Rodrigo Pessoa have two bronzes to their names. Rodrigo Pessoa also has Olympic and World Championship gold along with one gold and two silvers from the Pan American Games under his belt. His famous fellow rider Alvaro de Miranda, known as Doda in equestrian circles, calls silver and bronze his own here. 

Gold medals at Olympic Games, World and European Championships also feature in the CV of one of Germany’s most celebrated riders: Marcus Ehning has also won the World Cup four times, silver at the Europeans and bronze at the Worlds and Europeans. The milestones in his highly successful career, which got off to a very promising start with six medals at the European Championships for Young Riders, include the overall win in the 2010 Global Champions Tour.

Another CSI3* contender is World Champion Jos Lansink. The Belgian took his title in Aachen in 2006 and has not only chalked up many Grand Prix wins but also World Championship bronze, European Championship gold, silver and bronze.

It is just under a year since Swiss-born Steve Guerdat was crowned Olympic champion in London 2012. At the top of his list of successes is the European Championship title followed by Olympic bronze, European Championship silver and bronze.

Also at the 2012 London Olympics, the silver medal winning Dutch team included the two world-famous show jumpers Marc Houtzager and Maikel van der Vleuten, who will both be competing at the GLOCK HORSE PERFORMANCE CENTER. 

Austria’s Hugo Simon and the UK’s John Whitaker have international reputations as living legends. John Whitaker has amassed an unbelievable collection of one Olympic silver medal, four World Championship silvers and three bronzes, four European Championship golds, four silvers and three bronzes, two World Cup wins and four British Championship titles. 

In addition to countless international successes and ten national championship titles, evergreen Hugo Simon also has some special trophies at home. Aged 31 he won bronze at the World Championships in Hickstead in 1974, individual gold and team bronze at the alternative Olympics in Rotterdam in 1980 and team silver in Barcelona in 1992. And that was his fifth Olympics! “I really enjoy riding and as long as I enjoy it I’ll keep on riding,” says the agile 70 year old who married his partner of many years, Margit, on his 70th birthday.

You can see all the star riders and their horses at close quarters at the GLOCK HORSE PERFORMANCE CENTER over four days. The action starts on 4 July and admission to all the competitions is free.