All systems go for 2019 World Cup Jumping Final

Madden is one of the riders in Scandinavia from April 3–7 for the 2019 Final, which starts Thursday and runs through Sunday at the Gothenburg Horse Show. The American won the Final last year in Paris with Breitling LS, and is back with her 13-year-old stallion for this year’s edition. And while she qualified automatically for Gothenburg after her victory in the French capital, Madden has kept up the momentum since then and is one of the favourites at this year’s showdown – not least due to her exceptional equine partner. Indeed, as she recently told the Fédération Équestre Internationale, “He’s the kind of horse that when he’s in a groove, he kind of stays there.” Of note: if the pair can pull off a victory Sunday, it would be a third World Cup Final title for the Wisconsin native. 

Among the other riders from around the world who will be challenging Madden in the Scandinavium Arena are many of the top-ranked athletes in the sport, including World No.1 Steve Guerdat of Switzerland, who has two World Cup horses with him: Alamo and Venard de Cerisy. Guerdat’s compatriot Martin Fuchs is also aiming for the top of the podium with his 13-year-old grey gelding Clooney 51, seen by many as one of the strongest jumping horses in the world.

World No.3 Daniel Deusser (pictured above) – who finished on top of the Western European league qualifying standings, a league which sends the most riders to the Final – is part of the German group in Gothenburg, alongside Ludger Beerbaum and Christian Ahlmann. However, another rider from that league, Belgium’s Gudrun Patteet, had to bow out Wednesday morning after her horse Sea Coast Pebbles Z was not accepted by a competition veterinarian. 

Nevertheless, four other Belgians qualified for the event and will take part, all with a good shot at the title: Niels Bruynseels, Pieter Devos, François Mathy Jr. and Olivier Philippaerts. Other well-known riders like France’s Kevin Staut, Italy’s Lorenzo De Luca and the host nation’s Henrik von Eckermann will be doing battle with lesser-known rivals such as Shino Hirota of Japan, South Africa’s Lisa Williams and Chile’s Rodrigo Carrasco. 

Other top equestrian athletes who are not qualified for the Final will still be in Gothenburg to compete in different jumping classes, including Great Britain’s John Whitaker with Argento and JB’s Hot Stuff. Whitaker is a two-time FEI World Cup winner with the famous grey, Milton, in Dortmund, Germany in 1990 – and Gothenburg in 1991. [Update: John Whitaker will not be competing after sustaining an injury in the warm-up.]

In any case, all will be competing in a sport which carries its own particular risks to both horse and rider. “There’s obviously a danger aspect of it,” Madden acknowledged to The New York Times’ Lisa Cowan in the article noted above. “You have a 1,300-pound animal that could fall on you if you fall. And if you’re jumping 1.6 meters, you’re up in the air pretty high.” Still, she said, riders at this level are indeed not typically the ‘faint of heart’: “It all depends on the horse you’re on and having a lot of confidence in the partnership. That’s something that’s not normal in other sports.”