Bill Levett taking fifth place in second ERM leg
Bill Levett & his mount Shannondale Titan placed 5th at the second leg of the Event Rider Masters (ERM) in Wiesbadener, Germany. A great effort !
Britain’s Sarah Cohen celebrated her first ERM win.
Drama unfolded right up to the very last horse and rider combination on the demanding Wiesbaden cross country course in the unique grounds of Biebrich Palace, significantly shuffling the final podium positions. It was the first time ever that women occupied all three places on the podium, with Cohen scooping the 19,000 Euro (£16,000) first prize at the inaugural contintental leg of the series.
Sarah Cohen and the fifteen-year-old gelding Treason were always hot on the heels of the leaders across the two day ERM Eventing competition, climbing from fifth to third after jumping clear in the showjumping on Saturday morning. Cohen then piled on more pressure on the final two competitors on the cross country course, by performing the quickest round of the day adding just 3.6 time penalties, completing on a score of 46.8.
Ingrid Klimke (GER), the final rider and leader after the showjumping, gave an awesome cross country display until the final section of the course. Klimke left the home crowd in dismay when her horse SAP Escada FRH glanced off the second last fence in the main arena, handing victory to Cohen. The mistake dramatically dropped Klimke from first to sixteenth place overall.
As well as producing one of only two double clears in the competition, Cohen now has a commanding lead on the overall ERM leader board with fifty-one points.
Sarah Cohen, visibly elated commented:
“We had a good time at Leg 1 finishing in sixth, so I decided to come to Wiesbaden. I wanted to be competitive but never thought I would win! I knew Treason was fit and he just wanted to gallop and jump today. He is my only horse and we have a great partnership as we have been together eleven years. I am over the moon with him".
Julia Krajewski (GER), who was in second place after the dressage, made a remarkable recovery following a costly showjumping round earlier on Saturday, dropping her to fifth place. Riding Chipmunk FRH the pair excelled on the cross country, adding just six time penalties, climbing back up the leader board securing the second podium spot and the 15,000 Euro prize, finishing on 54.2.
Julia, who now sits in equal fourth in the overall series alongside fellow German rider Bettina Hoy on twenty-eight points, said;
“It’s very exciting to be competing in the Event Rider Masters. In my last five starts at Wiesbaden I’ve finished second and although I am not on top of the podium this is a very good result. I was disappointed with our showjumping, but Chipmunk FRH certainly made it up on the cross country today”.
Sweden’s Sara Algotsson Osholt riding Reality 39 recovered their third-place dressage position, after dropping to fourth in the showjumping after jumping clear but adding three time penalties. The combination delivered an excellent jumping round on cross country, adding 10.8 time penalties to finish on a score of 55.8. Sara finished in third place taking home 10,000 Euros in the process.
Sara who sits in equal sixth on the overall ERM leader board with Thomas Carlile (FRA) on twenty-six points, commented;
“It has been a fantastic competition this weekend. I was pleased with our showjumping but I felt the cross country wouldn’t suit Reality 39 with the twists and turns as he is a big horse, but he responded very well to the challenge and was superb today”.
The journey from the UK was made worthwhile for Brazil’s Marcio Jorge and Coronel MCJ who earned nineteen ERM points, finishing in eighth position, putting him into second in the overall ERM series with thirty-seven points.
The next leg of the Event Rider Masters is at the St. James’s Place Barbury International Horse Trials on the 8th and 9th of July. The highlights programme of Leg 2 will be aired on international TV channels from Thursday 8 June.
To watch every minute of the weekend’s action, full results and information visit Eventridermasters.tv/events/2017/Wiesbaden
Newsletter
