Page 137 - Sport Horse Sales 2026 - Holger Hetzel

SPORT HORSE SALES 2026

Auf internationaler Ebene werden mittlerweile Enormous sums are now being paid for top horses
enorme Summen für Spitzenpferde bezahlt. internationally. Can Germany still
Kann Deutschland in diesem Wettbewerb compete in this environment?
Interview mit Holger Hetzel überhaupt noch mithalten?
I sometimes compare show jumping with FC Bayern Munich in
Ich vergleiche den Springsport mit dem FC Bayern München football. Bayern does not have the same financial resources to
im Fußball. Bayern hat nicht die Millionen zur Verfügung für spend on expensive players as some English clubs backed by ext-
teure Spieler wie englische Clubs mit den Scheichs im Rücken. remely wealthy investors. Yet Bayern remains internationally com-
Deutschland hat keine Sponsoren wie andere Länder, um teu- petitive because the club develops young talent individually, invests
re Pferde zu kaufen. Dennoch ist Bayern international kon- in its players and aims to keep them for the long term.
kurrenzfähig, weil sie individuell junge Leute ausbilden und I see parallels with German equestrian sport. We do not necessari-
fördern und weil sie durch gute Verträge die Spieler langfristig ly have the same financial backing as some other nations to simply
binden. Dennoch ist Deutschland konkurrenzfähig, weil wir buy the most expensive horses on the market. But we remain
gute Reiter haben und junge Leute nachrücken. Junge Spieler, competitive because we have very good riders and talented young
Teamspirit und gutes Management mit guter Ausbildung füh- people coming through the system.
ren zu den gleichen Ergebnissen wie die der Mannschaften Young talent, team spirit, good management and excellent educa-
mit teuren Einzelspielern. Deutschland muss weiter gute junge tion can produce the same results as teams built around extremely
Leute ausbilden und langfristig gut begleiten. expensive individual players. Germany therefore has to continue
identifying and developing talented young riders, supporting them
individually and accompanying them over the long term.

Can a rider compensate for a horse that lacks quality?

At this level, we are always talking about exceptionally good horses.
Without the necessary quality, you cannot win a World Champi-
onship. But between a very good horse and a successful champi-
onship horse, there are many factors that cannot be seen on an
X-ray or reflected in a price tag. How has the horse been trained?
How well does the rider know the horse? How carefully has the
season been planned? How good are the management and the
team behind them? And how well does the rider perform when it
really matters? At this level, it is precisely these details that make
the difference.
After Aachen, you spoke particularly highly of the
quality of the German riding. What impressed you?

If you watched Marcus Ehning in the opening speed class, for ex-
ample, for me it was like watching an equitation round worthy of
a 12 out of 10. The ease, the calmness, the precision and balance
– and above all, the way he makes the horse look so good.
Nothing appears forced. That is partnership between horse and
rider at the very highest level, and it was not just true of him. At a
World Championship, the courses are as demanding as they can
possibly be and every tiny weakness becomes visible.
And yet, watching the German rounds, you often had the impres-
sion that everything was completely effortless. Of course, it is
anything but easy, but for me that is precisely what defines excepti-
onal riding. It was a demonstration of show jumping at its very best.

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