Germany Reigns Supreme In Rotterdam......

Germany's victory at the fourth leg of the 2008 Samsung Super League with FEI in Rotterdam this afternoon moves them right up from sixth to second spot on the leaderboard at the halfway stage of the series.

The Netherlands finished in runner-up spot, time faults proving costly for them on a day when the clock was particularly influential, and Belgium slotted into third ahead of Great Britain in fourth, Switzerland in fifth and Ireland in sixth. For Sweden it was yet another difficult day but they battled hard to avoid being last on the result sheet and that unenviable position went to the USA.

THE TIME....

"I planned to build an exciting course, but if I had another chance I might have been one or two seconds more generous with the time" admitted Dutch course designer Louis Konickx afterwards. With 15 of the 32 starters in the first round picking up time penalties, and 11 more collecting them in round two there were a number of riders who wished he had done just that.....

Mr Konickx decided to leave the time-allowed at 78 seconds after seeing The Netherlands' Angelique Hoorn, second into the ring, returning home well inside the target but as it turned out very few others could match her incredible pace.

"The course was really nice" commented Dutch Chef d'Equipe Rob Ehrens afterwards, "but I will be talking with Louis in the hotel tonight because we had only one really quick horse on our team and that was Angelique! For the rest we had top-class horses and top-class riders but the time was not in our favour. However we can live with it" he added, knowing that his riders had given an excellent account of themselves.

THE COURSE.....

It wasn't just the time that presented a challenge however. By the time riders got to the dog-leg line from the oxer at fence three to the liverpool vertical at four the questions had already begun and those who didn't meet the precise six-stride distance on the next dog-leg run from the vertical at six to the following triple combination paid the price there again and again. This was followed by the open water at fence eight, and because it had to be jumped off a short approach after a left-hand turn it claimed a number of high-profile victims while the double, three fences from home, also hit the floor on a regular basis.

FIRST ROUND.....

The pathfinders from Germany were already in control at the end of the first round, carrying just the single time penalties picked up by both Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum and Checkmate and Marco Kutscher and Cornet Obolensky when Ludger Beerbaum went clear with Coupe de Coeur allowing the nine faults collected by Marcus Ehning and Noltes Kuchengirl to be discarded.

The Dutch were in hot pursuit with just five faults on the board after Hoorn's clear was followed with just one time-fault for Gerco Schroder with Eurocommerce Monaco, a pole off the second element of the double at 10 and an additional time fault for Piet Raymakers and Van Schijndel's Rascin and a foot in the water for Marc Houtzager and Opium.

The British were in third, but heavily reliant on anchorman John Whitaker whose clear with Peppermill allowed the 24 faults picked up by his niece, Ellen Whitaker, to be dropped. Ellen's stallion Locarno stuck in his toes after passing the in-gate on his way to the liverpool vertical at fence four, but the 22 year old rider determinedly pushed him on to complete the track, however leaving four fences on the floor en route. Robert Smith's powerful gelding Vangelis was another victim at 10b and also added a time fault while Ben Maher, another exciting British prospect at only 25 years of age, produced a classically correct round with Rolette which added just a single time fault to the tally.

Belgian Chef d'Equipe Lucien Somers said yesterday that his team this season has been inclined to be impressive in the first round but less so second time out, but only Dirk Demeersman and Tymoon Caloo Meerchen managed to return without penalty in round one as Patrick McEntee and Ever Mury Marais Z faulted going into the bogey double at 10 and collected time, Niels Bruynseels's Item de Quintin landed in the water and lowered the penultimate vertical and Jos Lansink and Valentina van't Heike hit the first element of the triple combination.

The Americans carried 13 faults into the second round when single mistakes from Jeffery Welles (Armani) and McLain Ward (Sapphire) had to be added to the five faults picked up by Laura Kraut and Cedric after a double-error for Anne Kursinski and Champ. Sweden carried 16, Peter Eriksson's opening clear from Jaguar Mail counting for a great deal when Linda Heed picked up 13 faults with Columbus and Lotta Schultz left three on the floor with Calibra. Peder Fredricson made it all the way to the final oxer with Arctic Aurora Borealis before lowering that.

Bringing up the rear were the Swiss and Irish. Pius Schwizer and Nobless M were foot-perfect for Switzerland but the two mistakes from Christina Liebherr and No Mercy and the three from Daniel Etter and Peu a Peu had to be counted when Steve Guerdat's Kador du Valon picked up 17 faults. With 20 on the board however the Swiss were still five faults better off than the Irish who with 13-fault results from both pathfinder Capt Shane Carey with River Foyle and anchorman Edward Doyle with Seqouyah Farms Utopia had to add to count the double-error from senior team newcomer Capt David O'Brien with Mo Chroi and the single mistake from Cian's O'Conor's Complete.

ROUND TWO....

The Irish fought back with great clears from both O'Brien and O'Connor second time out so completed with a total of 30 faults when adding just five more from Doyle. The Swiss also pulled themselves together, Schwizer foot-perfect again to record one of only two double-clears on the day while Liebherr got it just right this time out so they completed on a total of 28 faults despite eight more from Etter and nine more from Guerdat. The Swedes looked vulnerable as they put 16 more faults on the scoreboard, but the prospect of finishing last for the fourth time in a row was diminished by a zero score from Schultz. The Americans however continued to slide, 12 faults from both Welles and Kraut, five from Kursinski and a pole down for Ward dropping them to last place with a total of 34.

The Belgians added nine more to leave them on 18 but they still improved a place when the British, now down to just three team-members as Ellen Whitaker did not return to the ring, collected 18 more to register a final tally of 24.

At the top of the scoreboard the Germans and Dutch were in a league of their own. These two sides are in constant battle for supremacy in the sport these days, and it seemed it could go either way this afternoon, but when Ludger Beerbaum secured his double-clear and sister-in-law Meredith also kept a clean sheet then they only had to add the five picked up by Ehning. Schroder warmed the hearts of the Dutch fans with a great clear second time out but the home side had to count four faults from Hoorn and a single time penalty from Raymakers when Houtzager left the second element of the tricky double on the ground and Germany's Marco Kutscher did not have to return to the ring for a second time because it was all over and victory was already sealed.

HISTORIC VICTORY....

This was Germany's 12th victory in Rotterdam since 1948. The show, celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, has staged 58 Nations Cup competitions during that time and the previous German victory was in 2002, the year before the Samsung Super League with FEI series began.

"I was very pleased with the course and the competition today" said German Chef d'Equipe Kurt Gravemeier, "but I was astonished when Meredith picked up a time fault in the first round. The time was very tight, but it was a fair competition" he added. Meredith said the course was "very exciting" while Ludger pointed out that although he felt "a little under pressure for time" he felt this was one of the best performances he has had with Coupe de Coeur. "Today it worked out well, he responded well and jumped well - I was very happy with him" he said. "I don't know if he will be my horse for Hong Kong" he added, "but I am lucky because I also have All Inclusive - we will see" he explained.

Marco Kutscher agreed that the time was tight but was really happy with the way Cornet Obolensky performed while Marcus Ehning said he was delighted to be back in the German team again.

Dutch team manager Rob Ehrens said his team "wanted to win - and we nearly succeeded" and with Olympic fever now very definitely in the air he seemed to be oozing confidence about his country's prospects this summer in Hong Kong. "I have a wonderful feeling about my team" he said. "We have more riders than ever at the right level and while my decision about who should be on the team will be difficult it is a good problem to have - when we go to Hong Kong we will be going for gold!" he said with determination.

As the 2008 Samsung Super League with FEI series now moves on to Aachen next month the excitement is mounting every moment.....

RESULT:
1. GERMANY 7 faults: Checkmate (Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum) 1/0, Coupe de Coeur (Ludger Beerbaum) 0/0, Noltes Kuchengirl (Marcus Ehning) 9/5, Cornet Obolensky (Marco Kutscher) 1/NS.

2. THE NETHERLANDS 10 faults: Blauwendraad's O'Brien (Angelique Hoorn) 0/4, Eurocommerce Monaco (Gerco Schroder) 1/0, Van Schijndel's Rascin (Piet Raymakers) 5/1, Opium VS (Marc Houtzager) 4/5.

3. BELGIUM 18 faults: Ever Mury Marais Z (Patrick McEntee) 5/8, Item de Quintin (Niels Bruynseels) 8/4, Tymoon Caloo Meerchen (Dirk Demeersman)0/4, Valentina van't Heike (Jos Lansink) 4/1.

4. GREAT BRITAIN 24 faults: Vangelis S (Robert Smith) 5/4, Rolette (Ben Maher) 1/5, Locarno (Ellen Whitaker)24/NS, Peppermill (John Whitaker) 0/9.

5. SWITZERLAND 28 faults: LB No Mercy (Christina Liebherr) 8/0, Nobless M (Pius Schwizer) 0/0, Peu a Peu (Daniel Etter) 12/8, Kador du Valon (Steve Guerdat) 17/9.

6. IRELAND 30 faults: River Foyle (Capt Shane Carey) 13/9, Mo Chroi (David O'Brien) 8/0, Complete (Cian O'Connor) 4/0, Sequoyah Farms Utopia (Edward Doyle) 13/5.

7. SWEDEN 32 faults: Jaguar Mail (Peter Eriksson) 0/12, Columbus H (Linda Heed) 13/21, Arctic Aurora Borealis (Peter Fredricson) 4/4, Calibra (Lotta Schultz) 12/0.

8. USA 34 faults: Armani (Geoffrey Welles) 4/12, Champ (Anne Kursinski) 9/5, Cedric (Laura Kraut) 5/12, Sapphire (McLain Ward) 4/4.

SAMSUNG SUPER LEAGUE WITH FEI 2008 - LEADERBOARD AFTER FOURTH LEG IN ROTTERDAM:

1. The Netherlands - 23.5
2. Germany - 22.0
3. Belgium - 19.0
4. Great Britain - 19.0
5. USA - 16.83
6. Switzerland - 15.08
7. Ireland - 11.83
8. Sweden - 2.75

For further information on the Samsung Super League with FEI at Rotterdam, The Netherlands on Friday 20 June check out WEBSITE www.chio.nl. Show President is Frans Lavooy, Show Director is Emile Hendrix, Show Secretary is Joyce Lebon and Press Officer is Anita Lussenburg - Email anita.lussenburg@ingram.nl.

The fifth leg of the series takes place in Aachen, Germany on Thursday 3 July. Show President is Klaus Peter Pavel, Show Director is Frank Kemperman and Press Officer is Niels Knippertz - Email niels.knippertz@chioaachen.de. WEBSITE www.chioaachen.de

FEI TELEVISION - BROADCAST INFORMATION - ROUND 4 IN ROTTERDAM:

Live
NOS (The Netherlands) - Friday 20 June 16.50
Equidia (France) - Sunday 22 June 21.45
RAI (Italy) - Check local listings
TV4 (Sweden) - Saturday 21 June 10.00

Highlights
CNBC Asia - Saturday 5 July 15.00
CNBC Europe - Sunday 6 July 17.00
ESPN Brazil - Check local listings
ESPN Star (Pan Asia) - Tuesday 8 July 18.00, Wednesday 9 July 07.00, 08.00, Thursday 10 July 15.00, 21.00,
Friday 11 July 04.00, 14.00, Saturday 12 July 01.30, 08.00
Eurosport - Wednesday 25 June 20.10, Thursday 26 June 09.00
Eurosport Asia - Thursday 26 June 10.00
Finnish Sport TV - Saturday 5 July 17.20
Fox Middle East - Friday 4 July 16.30, Saturday 5 July 21.00, Monday 7 July 18.00
Setanta Sports (Ireland) - Check local listings
SuperSport (Pan Africa) - Thursday 10 July 19.00, Friday 11 July 01.00, 06.00, Saturday 12 July 09.00, Sunday 13 July 12.30, Monday 14 July 16.00, Tuesday 15 July 17.00, Thursday 17 July 00.30
Sport Plus (France) - Monday 30 June 22.00
Sport TV (Portugal) - Check local listings
TG4 (Ireland) - Check local listings
TVE (Spain) - Check local listings
WCSN (USA) - Check local listings

SAMSUNG SUPER LEAGUE - NATIONAL PRIDE, INTERNATIONAL PASSION!

SAMSUNG SUPER LEAGUE WITH FEI - 2008 CALENDAR OF EVENTS:

ROUND 1 - La Baule (FRA) 5-11 May; ROUND 2 - Rome (ITA) 22-25 May; ROUND 3 - St Gallen (SUI) 29 May - 1 June: ROUND 4 - Rotterdam (NED) 18-22 June; ROUND 5 - Aachen (GER) 1-6 July; ROUND 6 - Hickstead (GBR) 24-27 July; ROUND 7 - Dublin (IRL) 8-10 August; ROUND 8 and FINAL - Barcelona (ESP) 18-21 September.

Photo: Germany came out on top. Courtesy of the Multi Media Centre