Anna-Lena Kracht Wins the Almased 65th German Dressage Derby
Eleven years ago, she already stood on the podium at the German Dressage Derby in the U25 age group. Back then, Anna-Lena Kracht (Groß Steinrade) took second place with Hendrix. Today, she rode Florinio to first place in the 65th Almased German Dressage Derby among the seniors. In the final with horse change, she received the highest score of 70.733 percent with her own horse, pushing Felix Kneese (Appen) and San Simeon OLD to second place with 69.900 percent. The podium was completed by Kristin Biermann (Osnabrück), who achieved the third-highest percentage on Queensland (69.600). The best horse award went to the 15-year-old Florinio, son of Floriscount.
“This is truly a very special experience,” beamed the newly-crowned recipient of the coveted and prestigious Blue Ribbon. “To take part in the big Derby this year and make it straight to the final was already a huge achievement for me. And to leave as the happy winner is simply indescribable.” The idea of possibly entering the German Dressage Derby only arose at the beginning of the year. Today, the dream became reality. Kracht has been riding Florinio since the gelding was four years old; he is her only horse at Grand Prix level. The opportunity to ride two other Grand Prix horses in the final, she described as “very exciting and eventful.” The chance to get a feel for other Grand Prix horses was a lot of fun for the 34-year-old: “Both horses were wonderful to ride!”
Second-placed Felix Kneese confirmed this: “It was incredibly interesting; we had three genuine Grand Prix horses in the final, all with great piaffes and passages.” For Kneese, it was his second Derby final with San Simeon OLD after 2023. That year, the pair finished with bronze, and the master horse trainer would have liked his Sir Donnerhall offspring to be named best horse—“For me, he is”—but he did not forget to praise Florinio: “I sat on Florinio for the first time, and he really deserved the title. It was a great riding feeling right from the start.”
Kristin Biermann was delighted to make the podium at her first final appearance. She had two horses in the first qualification round but revealed that she had always planned to ride Queensland in the final. With the Quaterback son, she’s formed a successful duo for eight years now, and the feeling of seeing other riders in his saddle was, she admitted, “a bit strange. When you've had a horse under saddle for so long, it does feel a little odd. But it’s also very interesting to see how the horses perform in the arena under other riders, and it also shows the success of their training if it works well with others, too.”
Organizer Matthias Alexander Rath aimed to bring renewed interest and greater appeal to dressage in Hamburg while maintaining the time-honored Derby tradition of horse change. His first conclusion after four days of exciting dressage in the Anrecht-Investment Dressage Arena was positive: “Yesterday and today, the atmosphere at the dressage stadium was fantastic. I firmly believe that in the coming years, as word spreads nationally and internationally that the footing here is excellent and we have an enthusiastic audience, Hamburg will become a ‘must’ for riders. Then, probably, more participants will bring a horse for the horse change. That’s the plan and the hope.”
No getting past Lilli von Helldorff
As the winner of both the first and second qualifications, Lilli von Helldorff (Oerel) entered the final of the German Pony Dressage Derby presented by Gruppo Selleria Equipe as the favorite. And once again, there was no getting past the 14-year-old squad rider. In the saddle of her 13-year-old veteran Dobbi Dobsen, she won the final in the Anrecht-Investment Dressage Arena with 73.250 percent and also achieved the second- and third-highest scores with her competitors’ ponies. Lilli comes from a true equestrian family and is trained by her mother, Inga von Helldorff. Dobbi is always highly motivated, Lilli praised her long-time partner with whom she had previously reached the Pony Dressage Derby final. “It has always been a dream for me to ride in the final, and Dobbi definitely made that possible for me,” the young rider said, modestly.
Promoting and enabling youth sport is also a major goal of the title sponsor, Gruppo Selleria Equipe, explained sales director Dario Molea: “These events are really amazing, and that’s why we’re involved in this sport. We want to see young riders develop with passion. That’s what drives us, and we will continue to support this event for the next three years.”
Viva Gold – “Character: a 15!”
“A phenomenal horse, very compact, with expression and style!”—these were just some of the compliments expert commentator Heike Kemmer had for this exceptional stallion. Viva Gold OLD, nine years old, stunningly beautiful, a grandson of the three-time World Cup champion Weihegold, and a real bouncing ball. Isabell Werth was all smiles: “This horse is simply a gift! He has the character of a 15 and the greatest potential.”
Sunday afternoon in the Anrecht-Investment Dressage Arena saw the second stage of the Louisdor Prize— the Liselott & Klaus Rheinberger Foundation Prize. Viva Gold and Isabell Werth were the undisputed winners with 76.809 percent. Second place went to last year’s runner-up at the Nürnberger Burg-Pokal Final: Lord Europe. Leonie Richter has had the Lord Leatherdale son under saddle for four years and trained him up to near Grand Prix level. Today, the pair secured second place with 72.425 percent and thus the second ticket for the Louisdor Prize Final in December at the Frankfurt Festhalle.
(URa · KiK/pe&pa)