The jump between Germany and Switzerland ultimately sealed Longines' first EEF European Cup win of the season. In Gurla Minor, the Swiss team led by Peter van der Weij jumped to victory. Germany leads the podium ahead of the United Arab Emirates.
Three countries entered the second round with a total of zero penalty kicks. This was the United Arab Emirates, considered by some to be the underdog with its young team, alongside leading show jumping nations Germany and Switzerland. Norway and the host nation Italy were eliminated with eight penalty points each.
In the second round, the results were mixed for the United Arab Emirates, as Omar Abdulaziz Al Marzouki was unlucky with Injoy de la Mor, a well-known horse in the series that competed for Spain last season. Salem Ahmed Al Suwaidi also brought down the bar with Funcity in De Heavenk, as did Abdullah Mohammed Al Marri. However, Ali Hamad Al Kirby jumped out in a very clear round with his experienced partner Garlin de Torres, putting his nine first-round penalties far behind him.
Switzerland produced a very strong performance in the first round with a team that included newcomers Jill Müller and Eva Gauci, both of whom jumped clear alongside Dominik Führer to take 0 penalties. In the second round, Dominik Führer and Jill Müller, both riding 13-year-old Dutch horses, gave an easy performance that allowed their final rider, Barbara Schnepper, on her beautiful Swiss mare Judy KM, to attempt victory. Unfortunately, Switzerland ended up with four penalties for two crossbars, which created the possibility of a jump.
“We had a very interesting team with two newcomers, Jill Müller and Eva Gauci. They both played very well, Jill with a clear double round and Eva also clear, so we are very happy about that,” said Swiss team captain Peter van der Weij. You can never expect to win, but we always strive for a win and we had a very good team, good horses who jumped a lot of clear rounds, so we knew we had a good chance of getting on the podium, but winning is even better. Always a special win.”
“This series is very important for us, it gives us the opportunity to bring out new combinations, new riders and new horses. I think the Nations Cup in general is very important for the sport, but also at this level it is very good to build people and horses.”
“Next week we have Mannheim, so that's a big goal with another team and hopefully we can get two wins in a row!”
Debutante Gilles Müller added: “Of course it's really good to make my debut in the Senior Nations Cup this way, with a clear double round. I've gained some experience from junior riders and young riders, but doing it in the senior category is completely different. I've known my horse For 8 or 9 years now, so I know her inside and out, so I think it's very special to do this with her.
