Four in a Row for Hungary’s Martin Hölle at the FEI Driving World Championship – Haras du Pin 2023! The other great success of the day went to the Swiss. Led by Marcel Luder, winner of the cones today, the Swiss took the silver team medal ahead of the Germans, who managed to maintain their narrow lead over the Dutch. France, in contention for two possible medals, finally bowed to pressure and finished 5th.

Martin Hölle, Alone in the World

It’s been six years since Martin Hölle reigned at the pinnacle of world pair driving. A first double title – individual and team – won in 2017 at Lipica in Slovenia at just 20 years of age, a second won at Drekbau (GER) in 2019, a third at Kronenberg (NED) two years ago….it’s quite simply unique in the history of equestrian sports. If we add his three medals won in 1 pony driving when he was a junior (individual world champion in 2013 in Pau, and vice world champion in Breda, Netherlands, in 2015), we can clearly speak of a Master of the discipline. Based in Beekbergen, at the Equestrian Center of Riant (Netherlands), and trained by Mieke van Tergouw and Claudio Fumagalli, Martin Hölle displays unfailing composure. And yet, he let his joy explode after completing his cones test. Affable, polite and reserved, Martin expresses himself in perfect English.

Everything seems meticulous, calculated, weighed and measured. Nothing is left to chance, giving a sense of perfection that no other nation can match. Not only is he bursting with talent and hard work, but he’s got a whole team behind him, starting with György Fekete Jr (already a team gold medallist in 2021) and Kristof Osztertag (also a gold medalist, but at Drekbau two years earlier). All six Hungarian drivers entered in this Championship finished in the top 50, symbolizing a well-stocked Hungarian reservoir.

Marcel Luder, ambassador for the Franches-Montagnes

The Swiss literally turned the Championship on its head. Faced with the errors of the French, whose leader François Dutilloy gave in on the final test of the cones, the Helvetians jumped at the chance to take a very fine and well-deserved team silver medal. Marcel Luder, author of the third-best performance of his team in the dressage, dominated the marathon and the cones, which he easily won thanks to an incredible pair of Franches-Montagnes horses.

“They don’t have the locomotion to compete in the dressage,” he admits, “but they turn very short!” A farmer by profession, Marcel, 33, lives in Oftringen in the canton of Aargau between Basel and Zurich. “I’ve been competing at a high level since 2016, and my first world championship was in Lipica in 2017. My father was already driving, but not internationally. We have six Franches-Montagnes horses at home. Charli (who took part in his fourth world championship this weekend, ed. note) was even born at home.”

When asked if he’ll ever beat Martin Hölle, Marcel remains lucid about his horses’ abilities. “They’re limited in their gaits even though they have a lot of quality in the other tests.” In short, unless the Hungarian loses a wheel along the way, his reign is not about to end.

Behind the Duo

Behind this duo, Erik Evers came out on top individually, and even though the Dutch team failed to reach the podium, he confirms that this nation remains one of the best in the world. His performance at cones earned him a fine individual bronze medal, crowning an international career that only began in 2018, here at the Haras national du Pin during the CAI where he placed 3rd, a competition in which his horse Datzo, present this weekend, had already taken part.

France’s results were not quite so brilliant, although there were some good points to be taken from the French team’s performance. Franck Grimonprez, author of a very good dressage, succumbed to the pressure of the marathon, and made two errors on the obstacles. François Dutilloy, the new French leader after the marathon, had the onerous task of completing the job. Franck Grimonprez put things right (14th in cones), but his ATEL Competition partner was unable to follow suit, losing his advantage. Nevertheless, he finished 10th and best individual French driver, while France settled for 5th place. This FEI Driving World Championship in Pairs brought together 92 of the world’s best drivers, 25 nations and over 270 horses in a brand new equestrian complex that proved to be a marvelous sporting showcase. Spectators also turned out in force, whether for the marathon on Saturday – as spectacular as ever – or for the final day, under an autumnal sun. Thousands applauded the leaders and enjoyed the exhibitors’ village. We look forward to seeing them from September 19 to 22, 2024, for another World Driving Championship, this time with 1 horse.

Individual ranking:

GOLD – Martin Hölle (HUN) / 145.83 pts
SILVER –  Marcel Lüder (SUI) / 158.77 pts
BRONZE – Erik Evers (NED) / 162.42 pts

Team Ranking:

GOLD – Hungary / 302.56 pts
SILVER – Switzerland / 317.04 pts
BRONZE – Germany / 322.72 pts
4- Netherlands / 325.70 pts
5- France / 335.43 pts