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Otto Becker after the Nations Cup victory: "We wanted to win, but the main target is Rio"

Friday, 15 July 2016
CSIO5* Aachen 2016

Otto Becker. Photo (c) Jenny Abrahamsson.
Otto Becker could not be happier with Germany's victory in the Mercedes-Benz Nations Cup. Photo (c) Jenny Abrahamsson.

The German team could not be happier after their victory in the Mercedes-Benz Nations Cup at CHIO Aachen tonight. Not only because it is their first victory since 2008, but also since they won it in great style. "We tried to win for a couple of times the past years, but it just did not work out. Today it did and it was a very good win as well," Ludger Beerbaum states about the victory.

"From all the victories I was involved here in Aachen, this might be one of the best wins we have ever had," Ludger Beerbaum emphasized about the beauty of the German victory. Chef d'Equipe Otto Becker was filled with great enthusiasm as well. "I have to make a compliment to all four riders. They did a super job with eight fantastic rounds. They really deserved the victory tonight. Earlier this week, we realised the horses are in very good shape and of course we wanted to win, but the main target is Rio so we thought ahead of that as well," Otto Becker said. "I can't be happier with the way the horses jumped, especially since we tried a few new horses in the Nations Cup," Becker referred to Christian Ahlmann's Epleaser van 't Heike, Marcus Ehning's Pret A Tout and Ludger Beerbaum's Casello.

Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum seemed to have only one concern after her first round with Fibonacci: she had to manage to stay on his back instead of being launched! "I put some sticky stuff on my boots for the second round," Meredith laughed. "We were really flying tonight."

Christian Ahlmann was the only German rider to knock a fence down in the Soers this evening. "I stepped a bit out of the light tonight. I came in a bit long into the triple combination and although Epleaser really tried, we just could not make it on the second part. The second round was much better, he really concentrated very well under the lights and cooped with the pressure."

So, the unanswered question remains: which horses will Ludger, Marcus and Christian take to Rio? "Although I really like to answer the question, we can all not do that at this moment. In the end, Otto has to make the decision," Ludger said.

But Otto Becker also did not give the final answer. "If you asked me yesterday, I would have said Daniel Deusser would go with First Class and Christian with Taloubet. If you ask me today, I would probably say tonight's four riders and horses will go. But if you ask me tomorrow evening again, I might as well say Marcus will ride Cornado and Ludger will ride Chiara," Otto Becker smiled.

We just have to wait and see until the official team will be announced later this week.

 


Text © World of Showjumping by Peter van der Waaij // Picture © Jenny Abrahamsson



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