Historic Eighth World Title for Boyd Exell and Team Silver at the World Equestrian Championships
Australian Four-in-Hand Driving legend, Boyd Exell has made history at the FEI World Championships Aachen 2026, winning his eighth consecutive individual World Championship title - an unprecedented achievement in the sport.
The global equestrian star combined with fellow countryman Tor van den Berge to secure an historic team silver for Australia in Driving, capping a remarkable championship for the Australian driving athletes.
In a remarkable Australian team performance, Exell and van den Berge produced exceptional performances across the three phases of Dressage, Marathon and Cones to finish just 2.12 penalties behind gold medallists the Netherlands.
The Netherlands claimed team gold on 315.13 penalties, with Australia finishing on 317.25 and Belgium taking bronze on 325.52.
The result marks a significant step forward for Australia, which claimed team bronze at the 2024 FEI World Championships.
Exell’s individual victory further cemented his place as one of the greatest athletes in the history of the sport, extending his already extraordinary run to eight consecutive World Championship titles.
“The horses flew round the course in the Marathon and again today! They were easy to drive, like they were all week. You can only be as good as the horsepower in front of you and I have fantastic horsepower.”
"It is really is a special moment and to get the silver with Tor makes it even better," Exell said.
With just two members making up Australia’s team there was no room for error for the pair without a buffer third driver score to drop if needed each round. For van den Berge, the final Cones phase proved a standout moment of the championship positioning himself at the top of the scoreboard for the round before Exell brought it home for Australia.
In other results over the Championships, Australia’s Dressage team also delivered one of the nation’s standout performances, securing Olympic qualification for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
Simone Pearce and Will Marq led the way for Australia, producing a series of outstanding performances throughout the week and progressing all the way through to the Grand Prix Freestyle to finish inside the World’s Top 16.
Pearce and her 10-year-old stallion began the championships with an impressive 72.391% in the Grand Prix, before producing an even stronger performance in the Grand Prix Special to score 74.435%.
Pearce said she was “blown away” by Will Marq’s performance. “He was just with me the whole time and so brave… really he’s just a baby.”
The result was made even more remarkable by the fact that Pearce had not expected to progress to the Special or the Freestyle with her relatively inexperienced Grand Prix partner.
“Just being here was the icing on the cake. Will has been phenomenal, and I’m just so excited for the future and what we can do with a little bit more time.”
Australian Eventing legend and eight-time Olympian Andrew Hoy once again demonstrated his remarkable longevity and ability on the world stage, finishing sixth individually in the Eventing competition with his pride and joy, Vassily de Lassos.
Competing at his 20th global championship and at the age of 67, Hoy and the 17-year-old Vassily de Lassos produced an outstanding performance across all three phases, including a career-best international dressage score of 26.9.
Hoy was visibly emotional after his dressage performance, paying tribute to both his horse and the team behind him.
“I have the easy part because I’ve got a complete team around me that have set the horse up absolutely beautifully. All I had to do was focus on what I needed to do and just go and do it.”
Hoy also spoke about his remarkable partnership with Vassily de Lassos, saying: “Vassily is an absolutely amazing horse. He’s just very, very special.”
The pair went on to deliver a strong cross-country performance on a challenging course that saw many of the world’s best combinations struggle, before completing the championship in style and finishing sixth overall against some of the world’s very best.
The result is another extraordinary chapter in the career of one of Australia’s greatest equestrian athletes and a fitting showcase of the partnership Hoy has built with his Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist.
“Every day I learn a new way with him and how to set him up for something like this. It’s not about just going in and riding the movements. It’s about preparing the horse in the correct way so that he has the ability to do his best.”
In Para Dressage, the team was hit by a late withdrawal when Paralympian Bridget Murphy was forced out due to illness. Teammates Lisa Martin, Dianne Barnes and World Championship debutant Mietta Innes-Irons rallied to compete individually, with Innes-Irons and Sir Helmut leading the way with an impressive Top Eight finish on their World Championship debut.
To view all individual and team results and relive the action click here.
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