Laura Bechtolsheimer has made history once again, becoming the first Brit to win a World Equestrian Games silver individual medal and breaking the British international grand prix special record with 81.71%.
Laura said: “Today was a little more difficult for me as it was tougher to get Alf’s attention. It wasn’t quite such plain sailing. But anyone who knows Alf and how he used to react in a big atmosphere like this knows how far he’s come and what an achievement this is. To win silver here is absolutely amazing.”
Moorlands Totilas took individual gold under the Netherland’s Edward Gal with an incredible 85.67%. He denied rumours that the horse had been sold and thanked the owners once again for allowing to ride such an incredible horse, saying: “I’ll never have another like him.”
For every passage the horse scored 10s and Edward received a 10 from every judge for his riding.
He said: “Totilas felt more relaxed today and so I could take more risks in the arena. I had a fantastic ride today.”
Steffen Peters took bronze on homesoil riding his former World Cup winner Ravel.
“It’s emotional standing on that podium in front of your home crowd,” said Steffen, who shed a tear at this point.
Both Laura and Fiona Bigwood are through to the kur final on friday night. If one horse drops out, Carl Hester will also go through.
For full results, report and analysis don’t miss H&H 7 October issue.