Jung is missing a second
Versatility king just missed the record dramatically
07/01/2023 3:08 p.m
Together with Chipmunk, Michael Jung gives everything. He’s catching up, but in the end he’s a second short of winning the CHIO eventing tournament. After bad luck last year, he does not want to achieve the record win this time either. At least there is consolation in the team.
Michael Jung really put his foot down again, carried by the applause of the Aachen jumping stadium, he galloped to the finish on Chipmunk. The obstacles were not the problem in the Aachen Soers, none of them gave him a headache. But the 40-year-old didn’t burst out in celebration because a second separated him from victory.
The German eventing king made up for his small gap to the British Tom McEwen, but his compatriot crashed Jung’s record party. The world champion Yasmin Ingham was 0.10 points better, Jung was again at a disadvantage in the Soers after the bitter downgrade last year.
“I lost an iron early on, which is difficult in this weather,” said the three-time Olympic champion, who would have drawn level with riding champion Ingrid Klimke with his third victory. But he looked ahead: “We all still have to work on a few details, but that was a good motivation with regard to the European Championship.”
Bad luck last year
The starting position was promising, with only 0.10 points behind McEwen, Jung started the showdown in the cross-country. He rode faultless and fast – but not fast enough. In the heart-stopping finale, a blink of an eye separated him from the great triumph.
Jung had already celebrated his supposed record victory in 2022, where a correction of the result turned the party mood around. Jung should not have taken an obstacle correctly at that time. Victory went to Sandra Auffarth.
The defending champion did not have a good day in Aachen, a bad cross-country ride pushed her to 18th place in the overall ranking. Auffarth was only 17th in dressage, a flawless jumping had reduced her mortgage and meanwhile meant eleventh place. The 36-year-old took it easy, her stallion Viamant du Matz walked slowly. “He had a break, that was his first start after that,” she explained: “That’s why I didn’t want to overdo it with the pace.”
German team wins
Christoph Wahler also got a very good lap at the end and then praised his partner Carjatan effusively. With the 14-year-old he rode “in my opinion on one of the best cross-country horses in the world”. The gelding “really has a thousand feet, despite his size” and “given the 29-year-old an outstanding ride”.
At the same time, this meant that there was at least one title to celebrate: After two victories for the British, Germany secured victory in the Nations Cup again this year after 2019. The eleventh overall – this record is unchallenged.