The dice have been rolled. The field of competitors for the FEI World Cup Four-in-Hand Driving has been confirmed. An illustrious row of international drivers will be going to the start at the World Cup event in Leipzig from 27 April to 1 May. The seventh and last qualifying station was in Bordeaux, France.
The victory was a safe prize for the team World Champion Ijsbrand Chardon (NED) out in front of the Swedish ex-World Champion Tomas Eriksson, who secured his start place in the Leipzig Final with the second place finish. But the Swiss driver Daniel Würgler – winner of the World Cup qualifier 2010 in Leipzig – suffered a great misfortune: the confederate “coned” a total of three times in the speed competition with obstacles over two rounds and therefore catapulted out of the Final starting field….
The competitors for the FEI World Cup Final Four-in-Hand in Leipzig are the World Champion and World Cup winner Boyd Exell (AUS) 27 points, Team World Champion Koos de Ronde (NED) 25 points, the Hungarian driver Jozsef Dobrovitz 24 points, the Swiss ex-World Champion Werner Ulrich 22 points, Team World Champion Ijsbrand Chardon (NED) 21 points and Sweden’s ex-World Champion Tomas Eriksson with 17 points.
The only wild card can be given to a driver from the host country Germany. The four-in-hand drivers Christian Plücker, Georg von Stein and Michael Brauchle will be competing for the final start place under the watchful eye of the German national trainer Ewald Meier during a knock-out in Warendorf on Sunday 20 February. “From our perspective, the best driver should also receive a chance in Leipzig,” said Meier.