The International Jumping Riders Club since 1977 is the voice of the showjumping riders from around the world.
International Jumping Riders Club
ROAD TO ROLEX IJRC TOP 10 FINAL: Henrik von Eckermann
Henrik von Eckermann
(25/05/1981)
Henrik has been leading the world ranking for sixteen months and faces the Rolex IJRC Top 10 Final as defending champion. Last year he sealed an extraordinary season by signing his name in the roll of honour of this prestigious event, where he had twice finished second in the previous three editions. Swedish by birth, German by equestrian adoption, Dutch by residence: Henrik von Eckermann is in his own right a show jumping excellence. An expression of a modern way of conceiving the equestrian sport, he trained at the school of Ludger Beerbaum, who remains to this day his first point of reference and his idol. In 2023 he won the World Cup final in Omaha and the team gold medal in the European Championship in Milan while in 2022 he achieved his goal of double gold in the World Championship in Herning. In 2021, at the Olympics in Tokyo, he was fourth-placed individually and team gold with the sporting partner of his greatest successes: King Edward.
2018: 2°
2019: 9°
2021: 2
2022: 1°
You’ve been on the podium of the Rolex IJRC Top 10 Final three times out of four participations. What’s the magic about this class?
«That’s correct. I’ve been second twice and I won it once. I think this is one of the favourite competitions of the year with the ten best gathered in the same class. If you want to be in the ranking, it is not enough to have a single good performance. You’ve got to be good all year round to get in the top ten. It’s a nice class»
As a true ambassador of the sport, which is your message to the equestrian people?
«I guess it is important that you think everyday about how you can improve and become a better horse person. You’ve got to do better every day. It is very important. Especially in horsemanship, our relation with horses. We must consider they are doing a lot for us and we have to find the right way to give them back our best in exchange»
Which horse are you going to enter in the Top 10?
«I was a bit uncertain at first, but then I decided on King Edward»
Who would you bet on for the 2023 Top 10 podium?
«I think Ben, Simon and Julien have the best chances».
Let's play a little game: enter your stable and think about Paris 2024… What is the first box you look at?
«To me this is a very simple question: always him… it will be King Edward»