In tennis it’s Wimbledon, in golf it’s Augusta – and in show jumping it’s Aachen. Victory in the Grand Prix at the CHIO is the dream of every rider. In addition to prestige, there is money.
Even without the million dollar premium, winning the Aachen Grand Prix at the CHIO is a must-have in a successful career for a top show jumper.
“Winning here once is something you want to achieve in your life. It’s something very, very special. That doesn’t just apply to me, but to all riders,” said Christian Ahlmann. The 47-year-old from Marl has already experienced the triumph in the riding stadium in the Soers with a capacity of 40,000 people: in 2014 he won on Codex One.
This Sunday (2.30 p.m.) Ahlmann tries with Dominator in the 1.5 million euro show-jumping. With the victory on his second horse Solid Gold in the Allianz Prize, he was able to get in the right mood on Saturday. “For me it is the day of the days of the year,” he said at the highlight on Sunday.
At the Corona edition in September 2021, Daniel Deußer immortalized himself on the famous winner’s board on the CHIO site with his success on Killer Queen. The Hessian, who lives in Belgium, is also present with the mare at this year’s edition.
Deußer, like the Swiss Martin Fuchs, can count on a further prize money in addition to the prize money of 500,000 euros. The Aachen Grand Prix is part of the Grand Slam series. These also include the Grand Prix in Spruce Meadows, Canada, in s’Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, and in Geneva.
If they triumph in a Grand Slam tournament, riders can look forward to bonuses of up to one million euros if they have previously been successful in one or more of the other three competitions. Deußer had won with Tobago in s’Hertogenbosch in March, the chestnut won in Geneva in December.
A total of 40 couples – including twelve from Germany – qualified for the Grand Prix. The decision will be made after two rounds and a jump-off.
