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International Jumping Riders Club
Germany Claim Team Jumping World Title on Home Soil at Aachen 2026
Host nation Germany produced a masterclass under pressure to win the team gold medal at the FEI Jumping World Championship Aachen 2026, sealing the title in front of a sold out Aachen Arena on Friday 21 August. The victory extends Germany's record in the discipline and delivers a home triumph in a championship already defined by its scale: 146 athletes from 51 nations and 31 teams contesting medals and, for the first time in Aachen, direct qualification places for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
A Nerve Wracking Final
Germany entered the deciding round at the top of the standings after the team qualifiers, narrowly ahead of the United States and Belgium, leaving almost no margin for error in rainy conditions at the Soers. With Olympic quota places also on the line, every round carried extra weight. The hosts held firm when it mattered most, retaining top spot through to the final rider and claiming gold, while Belgium took silver and Great Britain completed the podium with bronze.
It was Germany's anchor rider, IJRC Board Member,, Richard Vogel, who delivered the decisive clear round aboard United Touch S to confirm the title, sparking wild celebrations among the home crowd. His three teammates Marcus Ehning (Coolio 42), Sophie Hinners (Iron Dames Singclair) and Daniel Deusser (Otello de Guldenboom) had all produced fault free rounds across the competition to build the platform for victory.
Daniel Deusser summed up the emotion of riding to a world title on German soil:
I had goosebumps in the arena. Riding in here as a German, it’s an incredible spectacle. It’s indescribable.
National showjumping coach Otto Becker, who has led the German programme for 17 years, described himself as thoroughly happy and proud of the performance, calling it an outstanding advertisement for the sport and stressing that the team's gold medal was fully deserved.
Four former Young Riders Academy Members on the Winning Team
Notably, two members of Germany's gold-medal winning quartet Richard Vogel and Sophie Hinners were part of the Young Riders Academy, the Rolex backed talent programme that supports promising young show jumpers on their path to the top level of the sport. Vogel joined the Academy in 2020, while Hinners was selected in 2019; both have since become mainstays of the German senior team, with Vogel currently the reigning European champion and world number two, and Hinners a 2025 European bronze medallist making her championship debut with Iron Dames Singclair.
Hinners was among the standout performers of the week, holding individual honours in the early stages of the competition and finishing as the highest placed woman in the field, underlining the depth of talent the Academy has helped to cultivate.
While Belgium’s silver winning team featured Thibeau Spits, and Great Britain’s bronze medal was completed in part by Harry Charles. Their presence on the podium underscores the long term impact of the Academy in developing the sport’s next generation of championship level talent
Speaking after the medal was secured, Hinners described
the feeling of winning in front of the home crowd as almost impossible to put into words, praising the team's atmosphere and spirit and the way the horses had jumped throughout the competition.
Olympic Stakes: Seven Nations Punch Their Ticket to LA28
Beyond the medals, Aachen 2026 marked the opening of the qualification pathway to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. With the United States already guaranteed a team berth as host nation, seven Olympic team quota places were awarded to the highest placed remaining teams: Germany, Belgium, Great Britain, Italy, Switzerland, Ireland and France.
The achievement carried particular significance for some of the qualifying nations. Italy's Piergiorgio Bucci and Giulia Martinengo Marquet rides Delta Del'isle described
the relief of securing their country's return to Olympic team jumping after a 22 year absence
As National Olympic Committees retain exclusive authority over team selection, each qualifying federation's final roster for LA28 will depend on its NOC's own selection process closer to the Games.
What's Next: Rest Day, Then the Individual Final
Saturday 22 August is a rest day for the Jumping competition, giving horses and riders a full day of recovery before the championship reaches its climax. The Individual Final takes place on Sunday 23 August, from 14:20 to 17:20 CEST, when the 2026 individual World Champion will be crowned.
The final is decided over two rounds, both judged as Table A not against the clock, with fences set at a maximum height of 1.65m. Round A is open to the top 25 individual combinations (plus any tied for 25th place) based on cumulative penalties from the first competition and both rounds of the Team Final. The 12 best placed combinations after Round A then advance to Round B. The rider with the lowest total penalties across all three championship competitions is declared FEI World Champion; in the event of a tie for first place, the title is decided by a jump-off against the clock.