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‘Beyond blessed’: Olympic champion to become a father

Becky Murray Becky Murray

    • German Olympic champion Christian Kukuk and his partner, US showjumper Veronica Tracy, are soon to become parents.

    The couple announced that they are expecting a baby girl this spring.

    “2024 was everything… but 2025 looks like it might just be more,” said 35-year-old Tracy, who added that she was “so grateful for all of it”.

    “Feeling beyond blessed to welcome our little miracle girl this spring.”

    Christian had a summer to remember and on the CHIO Aachen podcast in November, the 35-year-old said he found out about Tracy’s pregnancy immediately before the individual final at the Paris Olympics.

    Christian and the eye-catching 15-year-old Comme Il Faut gelding Checker 47 went on to produce the round of their lives in a three-way jump-off with Steve Guerdat and Dynamix De Belheme, and Maikel van der Veleuten and Beauville Z. Christian, who was first to go, produced the only clear round and in doing so became the first German showjumper to win individual Olympic gold since Ulrich Kirchoff in 1996. Steve won the silver and Maikel the bronze.

    Christian and Checker’s superb year continued when they were on the German team that won the Longines League of Nations final in Barcelona in October, and finished third in the Global Champions League Super Cup final in November.

    Tracy has enjoyed her own success in the ring, and has owned horses with Richard Vogel through her business Coleridge Equestrian. She has competed to five-star level with Killossery Kaiden and Monbeg Thunderball B, and in 2024 competed at two-star shows in Rotterdam, Riesenbeck, and at the London leg of the Global Champions Tour.

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    Becky Murray
    Becky Murray

    H&H senior news writer
    Since joining H&H in 2018, Becky has covered a broad range of equestrian news including welfare matters, veterinary studies, FEI Tribunal hearings and road safety campaigns. She has also interviewed top riders including Scott Brash, John Whitaker and Ian Stark, to name just a few. Becky’s reporting has taken her to Canada for Spruce Meadows and France for Pau five-star, as well as the Royal Highland and Blair Castle International Horse Trials closer to home. She was also a key part of the remote reporting team for the Tokyo Olympics and the Europeans.
    Becky Murray

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