‘We do it for the love and passion’: Germany off to solid start in Olympic dressage

Frederic Wandres has secured himself a place in the Paris Olympic dressage individual medal decider – and got Germany’s team hopes off to a solid start – thanks to a 76.12% score in the grand prix test with Bluetooth OLD.

This score was good enough for second in the group B session, which was topped by Denmark’s Daniel Bachmann and Vayron. The top two from each group in the grand prix, along with the next six highest overall ranked pairs, advance to the freestyle.

Frederic and the experienced 14-year-old Oldenburg gelding were rewarded with mostly 8s and 7.5s throughout, but marks were lost during the one-time tempi changes, with the judge at H scoring them a 5. The final halt earned the pair two 9s.

Frederic said “Bluetooth” was “feeling good”.

“In the beginning I was thinking hopefully he doesn’t find the first impression of the atmosphere too much and get a little bit too excited, but it was perfectly the right level of how it has to be,” he said.

The established pair were part of Germany’s silver medal-winning team at the 2023 Europeans, and Frederic speaks fondly of the connection they have built together.

“He is a very sensitive horse, if something changes in the environment he picks up on those things. I’ve known him now a pretty long time and the better you know your horse, the more you can react to those situations. And this helps you when you get to an atmosphere like this,” he said.

“We love our horses as if they were children. We do it for the love and the passion”.

The grand prix acts at the qualifying competition for both the grand prix special (for the team medals) and the grand prix freestyle, which decides the individual medals. The top 10-ranked teams once all the scores have been combined after the grand prix will move on to the special, including those tied for 10th place.

Discussing Germany’s chances in the Paris Olympics dressage, Frederic is quietly confident but said they have to deliver in the special.

“I think that was a good start for the team, and I can be happy to be in the team with Jessica [von Bredow-Werndl] and Isabel [Werth] – they’re some of the most most experienced people in those dressage arenas and Jessica is world number one,” said Frederic.

“Together we are a super strong team. How it ends tomorrow after the grand prix maybe will kind of show a little bit in which direction we’re heading, but we have to all go in again starting on zero. I know that I will go more than all in!”

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