Text © World of Showjumping

“The story about how I got Conner again shows that most of the time it’s the horses that find their riders,” Martin Fuchs tells World of Showjumping about his 12-year-old gelding Conner Jei (born Conner 70, by Connor 48 x Cosimo – bred by Gerhard Stamer). With Fuchs in the saddle, Conner Jei has over the last three years skyrocketed to the top of the sport; at the beginning of 2021 the gelding was jumping at 1.45m level, but a little over half-a-year after Fuchs took over the reins, the two won the prestigious CSI5* 1.60m Rolex Grand Prix of Dinard. “He has such crazy ability that the sizes of the fences don’t really matter,” Fuchs says.

In 2022, the two topped the CSIO5* 1.60m Longines Grand Prix of St. Gallen and finished second in the CSIO5* 1.60m Turkish Airlines Prize of Europe in Aachen. This year the gelding has continued to impress; after a break at the beginning of the year, Conner Jei went on to win the CSI5* 1.60m Rolex Grand Prix of Windsor, took third in the CSIO5* 1.60m Turkish Airlines Prize of Europe in Aachen, then jumped double clear in the CSIO5* 1.60m Longines FEI Nations Cup in Falsterbo and topped the CSIO5* 1.60m Longines Grand Prix at the same venue. In November, the two did their first indoor show of the 2023/2024-season and placed 8th in the CSI5*-W 1.60m World Cup in Verona, while in December, Conner was Fuchs' choice for the Rolex IJRC Top 10 Final where they finished 5th.

To learn more about the powerful gelding’s journey to the top sport, WoSJ spoke with Conner Jei’s previous riders Eric Ten Cate, Stephanie Knauf and Franziska Müller – as well as with Martin Fuchs, discovering that his partnership with Conner Jei was meant to be. 

“Back in 2020, I was in Germany with a good friend and client to try horses for his daughter,” Fuchs tells about the day he first met Conner. “It was a Friday night, quite late, and we went to an indoor in Warstein where Jens Wawrauschek presented some horses for my client.”

“I did not know who he was at the time, but Frank Müller – Conner’s owner back then – was also there and said that he had brought a horse for me to try. He also told me that he had sold some horses to my uncle Markus Fuchs and my owner Adolfo Juri in the past, such as Granny – who I of course knew well,” Fuchs recalls.

When he told me what he wanted, I almost fell off the horse

- Martin Fuchs -

“Frank brought Conner to the indoor, and I must say he did not look great at the time. I also took notice of his huge feet; the biggest I have ever seen on a horse!” Fuchs laughs. “I asked Frank what price he had in mind for the horse, but he asked me to sit on him first. I replied that I needed to know a bit what I was trying, but did not really get more info so in the end I got on and rode him. And thanks God it went this way, because if I would have known upfront what Frank asked for Conner, I would probably never have tried him.” 

“After I had made a few jumps, Conner did not really want to go to the fences and started to turn around,” Fuchs recalls. “I really had to ride him a bit forward and get him in front of my leg but as I kept jumping, he got better and better – I really had an amazing feeling.”

“The jump was incredible; he was so careful!” Fuchs continues. “What is very rare with horses as careful as Conner is the range he has on the oxers, he barely ever struggles for the back pole – when you give leg, he jumps two meters further. My father always likes to try the horses on an oxer-vertical combination with one long stride, 8 meters or more, to make sure they pull you out and show heart and that’s what I did with Conner when I tried him. It was not big, maybe 1.35-1.40, but quite large with a long distance in between and he did this really well.”

“When I was done jumping, I asked Frank again for the price and when he told me what he wanted, I almost fell off the horse,” Fuchs laughs. “To me the price was unrealistic for what the horse had been doing. But Frank kept insisting, and he was also willing to do something 50%. After a few weeks we came to an agreement where Adolfo Juri bought half of Conner, and he eventually came to our place. I still had my doubts though, even if the trial had been amazing.”

What is very rare with horses as careful as Conner is the range he has on the oxers

- Martin Fuchs -

“When I got Conner, I took him to a few smaller shows before I brought him with me to Wellington at the beginning of 2021 where he really developed well. Then he jumped double clear in the Nations Cup in La Baule, and after that Adolfo Juri decided to buy Frank out,” Fuchs tells. “Frank was very fair at the time, there was a lot of interest in the horse as he was jumping the 1.60m classes like an airplane despite being new at that level. However, Frank stuck to his word about how we could buy him out. So, Adolfo secured him for me and since then we have had great success.”

“The good thing with Conner was that even if he had not been jumping big classes, he had a lot of experience since he had already been jumping at a lower level, seen many different rings and was not spooky,” Fuchs tells. “Wellington was a good place for him as he could jump him in different rings every week. I started on 1.30 there and ended on 1.50m, and I could really feel that he could jump anything if I could just improve his rideability.”

“We bought Conner at the end of his 4th year from Franz-Josef Albersmeier – a good friend of our family,” Franziska Müller – Conner’s former rider, prior to Fuchs, tells. “Albersmeier called my dad and told him he had a horse with unbelievable scope, and this was Conner. My dad went to have a look at Conner and bought him straight away.”

I was totally in love with his scope

- Frank Müller -

“I only saw him free jump, but I was totally in love with his scope,” Franziska’s father Frank Müller fills is. “His canter also indicated that he had a lot if scope, so I really believed in his potential from the first moment I saw him.”

“It was not so easy with him in the beginning, because he really had a mind of his own – but his jump was unbelievable,” Franziska tells about Conner, who was given to Eric Ten Cate to ride. 

“I got him when he was four,” Ten Cate explains about Conner [Editor's note: Watch the two in the video above when Conner was 5-years-old]. “Frank Müller brought him over to my place, as he was not the easiest horse. He told me he thought it was a good horse, and that he wanted to keep him for his daughter.” 

“I knew from the beginning that Conner was a very good horse and he jumped incredible from day one; the jump was always there,” Ten Cate tells.

“The difficulty with him was that he was always very playful; when you wanted to go left, he went right – he was kind of all over the place. After a year or so, he had improved a lot though. I always thought that he was a very good horse, but you never know – and so much depends on the rider they end up with. I believed Conner belonged with a professional, who has good management.”

He was always very playful; when you wanted to go left, he went right

- Eric Ten Cate -

“As a character, he was always funny, he always had something going on, he was entertaining to work with,” Ten Cate tells. “I liked him, maybe because I like horses that are a bit complicated in the beginning. After a year, he was easy and he went back to his owners when he was six.” 

“Back then, I thought he for sure was a good 1.50m horse but the step up to 1.60m is always a big one. Now, I am not surprised seeing him do well with Martin and I feel proud to have been a part of his story,” Ten Cate says. 

Stephanie Knauf rode Conner when the gelding was six. “It was a super time,” she recalls. “Conner has a very special character, and he was quite wild and strong, but the feeling on the jump amazing. I have ridden many young horses, but the feeling on him was unlike anything I had ever felt before. It was clear that there was a lot of potential in him; his energy was exceptional. Every round he does with Martin, I watch – I am a fan! I only rode him for a year, but it makes me proud to see how good he turned out to be – it is very special for me.” 

His energy was exceptional

- Stephanie Knauf -

After Ten Cate and Knauf, Franziska Müller took over the reins when the gelding turned seven. “We started at 1.20m level and ended up jumping international 1.45m classes,” she tells. “It was always a lot of fun with him although he was quite special to ride, and I really had to find my way with him as he was not a very classical type. He is so careful and has so much scope though, and one thing I loved about him was that he always fought for me – he would always try to not let me down. He wanted to be clear and to do a good job.”

Although Conner and Fuchs have had an outstanding summer season, Fuchs is determined to improve in order to reach his preferred level of consistency. “I still struggle a bit with the control and connection, and as he is so extremely careful, I always have to be very, very focused and correct when I ride him,” Fuchs explains. “He also does not have the easiest mouth, and his mentality is not always the same – which also can be challenging. Keeping him in the right headspace – calm, relaxed and happy every day – is difficult. I feel like we still have a lot to improve, and we are still learning to understand each other.”

“At the end of last year, during the indoor season, I was struggling a bit with him and we decided to give him a bit of a break, took his shoes off to make sure his feet grew a bit better as he has very low heels and I think that was a good decision. Although he still did not feel great when I started him again, he went to Windsor where he won the five-star Grand Prix. I believe that for Conner, the most important is being in a good headspace. He is a horse I need to spend a lot of time with myself; I think he really appreciates that and it’s something that really strengthens our bond.”

He is a horse I need to spend a lot of time with myself

- Martin Fuchs -

“We are still in a phase where we have not figured him out 100% yet, and we keep trying different bridles as he is quite sensitive – especially around the poll area. I have also been working a bit with an American professor on horse behaviour – Angelo Telatin – who I met in Rome through my sponsor Veredus. I have followed up with Zoom meetings with him to improve how I work with my horses. It’s been interesting, and I have picked up on a few new things,” Fuchs explains. “With horses you never stop learning, and I think my dad is the perfect example of that. When he stopped competing himself, he started with trotters, and he went to visit all the best trotting stables around Europe. He learned a lot from that, and our whole way of working with the horses became way more natural since then.”

“With Conner, I have also gotten some help with the flatwork from my uncle Markus,” Fuchs explains. “My way of riding did not work as well with Conner as with my other horses – I ride all my horses quite light with the head up, but Conner perhaps needs a bit more of the German approach to flatwork. I have worked on getting him more responsive to my leg and that he collects easier, which I think also has helped a lot. In the ring he likes to be left alone though.”

“Eventually I think he can do it all,” Fuchs says of Conner. “He could for sure be one for Paris next year, but I am very lucky to have three horses that can do it – all of them fantastic – but it’s only Leone that has done championships so far. It’s a very different situation with Conner compared to Leone, who I have had since he was six. It takes a lot of time to learn how each horse is and even though I have had Conner for almost three years now, it’s not the same as with Leone who I have had since a young horse.”

“Today, I am thankful things went the way they went back when I first tried him,” Fuchs laughs. “Thanks God Frank just showed up with Conner like he did without sending me a video upfront, because I don’t think I would have even tried him. And, if I would have known the price, definitely not!”

The partnership between Conner and Fuchs has shown that Frank Müller did a great job matchmaking back in 2020. “It’s really nice to see that we found Conner his perfect match!” Frank’s daughter Franziska says. “We love to follow Conner and Martin, and we are both very happy that Conner has been given the chance with one of the world’s best riders.” 

12.12.2023 No reproduction of any of the content in this article will be accepted without a written permission, all rights reserved © World of Showjumping.com. If copyright violations occur, a penalty fee will apply.