Edited press release from Global Champions League 

Riesenbeck International powered by Kingsland Equestrian secured their 4th Global Champions League win of the 2023-season in the GCL of Paris presented by La Tour Eiffel. 

The GCL of Paris, the 8th leg of the 2023-season, took place with the breath-taking backdrop of the Eiffel Tower in the heart of the French capital. Taking the win from the ever-consistent Madrid in Motion, Philipp Weishaupt on Zineday (Zinedine x Polydor) and Christian Kukuk on Mumbai (Diamant de Semilly x Nabab de Reve) produced the only four-fault score sheet for the championship leading team as they make it a 50% win rate this season winning four of the eight stages.

Speaking to GCTV, Christian Kukuk explained about taking their third consecutive GCL podium: “We are surfing on a wave at the moment. It’s unreal, I think we can say this has never happened before in the league, that after eight stages, we have won half of them, and two more podiums I think – that's incredible. We said it before, we are very, very lucky as we have outstanding horses… They are all in the perfect age this year. We try to keep the wave up as long as possible.”

Mack McAuley and Laura Kraut of Madrid in Motion both collected a single rail each, with Kraut’s single-time penalty aboard Calgary Tame (Old Chap Tame x Kashmir vh Schuttershof) in round two etching them into second place on 9 faults. The ever-consistent Paris Panthers yet again took their place on the podium with 12 penalties over the two rounds. 

The top three placed teams continue to make their mark on 2023’s GCL championship standings at the halfway point of the season, edging further away from the pack of 16 teams. After eight stages, Riesenbeck International tops the standings with 183 points, followed by Madrid in Motion with 159 points in second, Paris Panthers with 149 points in third and Stockholm Hearts with 141 points in fourth.