Sweden is to rejoin the top level of the Nations Cup series after winning the FEI Promotional League final in Barcelona at the weekend (25 September).
The country, which was relegated for the 2011 season, will compete against teams from Germany, Great Britain, The Netherlands, Ireland, Belgium, France and Switzerland in 2012.
The team of Malin Baryard-Johnsson, Angelica Augustsson and Svante Johansson and Rolf-Goran Bengtsson – who won individual gold at the FEI European Jumping Championships in Madrid (13-18 September) – finished ahead of Spain in second and the Ukraine in third.
“We really tried hard this year because we all wanted to come back to the top league next season,” said Ms Augustsson.
“It is difficult to field enough horses and riders for all of the top events in the year, but we have plenty of other promising partnerships coming along who will be able to compete for the team next season – the situation is getting better for us now.”
Sweden also qualified for the Olympics at the Europeans in Madrid, so to be in the top league in the run-up to London 2012 is vital.
For a full report see Thursday’s issue of H&H (29 September).
