(mps) A thrilling event: once again there was a great atmosphere in the Hanns Martin Schleyer Halle for the 24th International STUTTGART GERMAN MASTERS Horse Show’s knock-out competition for the Prize of the XXL-Sicherheit Group. Sixteen riders saddled their horses for the direct rider against rider contests over two identical courses and to the catchy music deejayed by the witty Stefan Krawczyk and Christian Graf von Plettenberg.
Though the intention was for the competition to be a contest between Baden-Württemberg and the Rest of the World, things didn’t quite turn out that way. But the crowd loved it. Unfortunately none of the state’s riders, nor for that matter ones from the rest of Germany, made it into the final. Though Armin Schäfer (Baden Württemberg) reached the semifinals on Paradiso’s Girl he met his match in the “old master” Roger-Yves Bost on Kire Royal Star. The Frenchman had previously beaten Schäfer’s fellow club member, Paul Hofmann in the first round. Jürgen Kurz on Aisha was the other German to lose in the semis. He was beaten by the Dane Tina Lund on Winny the Blue D’Ive. She in turn had no chance in the final against the two-time MERCEDES GERMAN MASTER (1990, 1991) winner. Accompanied by the Stuttgart crowd’s rapturous applause, Roger-Yves Bost duly secured the win and a purse of 2,000 euro. Tina Lund, daughter of the former professional footballer Fleming Lund, had to settle for 1,600 euro.
