The German dressage team has suffered two significant withdrawals ahead of the World Championships in Aachen (August 11-15). Charlott Maria Schürmann and Jessica von Bredow-Werndl will not participate in the CDIO in Hagen this weekend, a traditional qualifying event for the German team.
Schürmann has prematurely ended her impressive winning streak with Dante's Pearl. The mare, who had been racking up victories for the past two months with impressive scores (77.191% in the Munich Grand Prix Special), "currently needs a short break," explains the rider in her thirties. Despite a bronze medal at the national championships, the national team staff deemed the 11-year-old filly insufficiently prepared.
Von Bredow-Werndl also withdrew with Times Kismet, despite having competed in the parallel CDI 4* event. These two absences carry significant weight: according to German protocol, missing this major test almost certainly results in exclusion from the World Championships.
As a result, Raphaël Netz and Great Escape Camelot join the German roster, while Tobias Nabben with Forster 16 becomes an official reserve for the host nation.