No wonder the German fans are celebrating!
Not surprisingly, no-one managed to beat Bettina Hoy’s score of 24.6 today, even though the biggest name in the game went late in the day.
There is always an expectation when Michael Jung competes and here he stands to break yet another record by winning four European Championships in a row.
“Today there was a lot of pressure but I think that most of the pressure is from myself"says Michael in our interview below "The other (German) riders had such good results before me, but for me it’s important not just to get the best marks but to do the best dressage for the Championship that I can”
There were sharp intakes of breath from some of the German journalists watching as Michael and fischerRocana started their test with the first scores trending in the 40’s, due to a 5 from Sue Baxter for the entry. Gott im Himmel, what is happening? They need not have worried as the marks soon improved and Michael’s name bumped Britain’s Gemma Tattersall off the top three of the scoreboard with a score of 32.80
Michael and fischerRocana
Michael himself was not worried, he knows that the 12 year old mare is a little tense when first in the arena
“She was a little bit spooky and nervous in the beginning but I know her and it’s not a bit problem. I just have to be quiet and wait for the first minute or so and then she was really nice”
Michael Jung
Gemma and Quicklook
Gemma Tattersall had earlier posted a personal best on Quicklook V with a score of 33.1 and finishes the dressage phase as the best British rider although she is riding as an individual. Her aim is to try and win an individual medal for Team GB and today she looked very focussed at the start of the test and very happy at the end
Gemma Tattersall
Nicola Wilson and Bulana
Nicola Wilson is the top British team rider on Bulana, a horse who can be a handful but she really put her best foot forward in the arena today to score 35.1 for seventh place currently.
“Bulana is a very special horse to me” says Nicola “She has always been very feisty and she’s always been very quick to go everywhere. My job is to settle her down and focus all the energy she has into performing together as a partnership and that, over the past couple of years, has really started to come forward. If you can work with her, she really tries her best and gives everything she has”
Bulana will need to try her best tomorrow as Nicola says that the course is huge
“It’s really difficult. The first three fences are big but designed to get you into the course then from Fence 4, my goodness the questions come thick and fast. I really think it’s 4* technicality and the questions come at you all the way to the end. There are a number of waters and I think that we really will have to ride with our heads, go out there and be positive to get the job done”
Sara Algotsson Ostholt and Reality 39
One of the last riders of the day, Sweden’s Sara Algotsson Ostholt also has a lot of respect for the course and wonders if there are ‘hidden problems that we haven’t even recognised yet’
Sara and her 13 year old mare Reality 39 moved into fifth spot with a score of 34.20, dropping Tom Carlile and Upsilon into sixth place.
Although Bettina has still nearly six penalties in hand over Ingrid, who scored 30.30 in this morning's session, the next group of riders are quite close with just 4.3 penalties between Michael Jung in third and Kai Ruder in 10th
The German team goes into the cross country day with not just a lead of 24.1 penalties but with a record low dressage total for a team at a Championship of 87.70. However it is then pretty tight for the next three teams with France (111.80), Britain (111.90) and Sweden (116.90) tightly bunched
It’s going to be an exciting day..................
