Ludwiczak lucky in Kraków once again

The final point of Friday the program was the Puissance, for the prize of Grupa MTP. Two riders advanced to the final round, but only one of them cleared a wall of 210 cm – Marek Lewicki and 9-year-old Itoulon B. Second place went to Łukasz Brzóska with Quicklensky, and third to Germany’s Christoph Amelong-Heiden riding Shacarola.

Friday evening at TAURON Arena Kraków marked the finale of the rivalry of eventers, who battled it out already at CAVALIADA shows in Warsaw, Poznan and Sopot. The last class kept the audiences at the edge of their seats until the very end. The first course was technical, and the time allowed was very precise. Six pairs advanced to the second round, where dynamic gallop was key. The fastest one of them was the last one to go - Daria Kobiernik with her homebred Ideal Girl. Second place belonged to Mariusz Kleniuk with the thoroughbred Donna Summer, and Joanna Pawlak closed off the podium riding Fantastic Frieda.

„Today the perfect scenario played out for me and I’m beyond happy. I liked the course – it was demanding and well-suited to the level of the final. A lot happened, and the riders were careful, because there were quite a few “knockable” fences. Unlucky that the leader Paweł Warszawski did not qualify for the second round. In the final course there was a lot of drama and frequent changes in the lead. I knew I had to give it all I’ve got.” – said Daria Kobiernik.

The final class decided the medalists of the Polish Indoor Cup. Gold went to today’s winner Daria Kobiernik, silver to the Polish national champion in the young riders category – Julia Gillmaier, and bronze to the Tokyo Olympian Joanna Pawlak. 

There was a lot of excitement in today’s Big Tour class, for the prize of LOTTO and under the patronage of the Marshal of the Małopolska Region. The competition was a chance to score Longines Ranking points, as well as points for the World Cup Central European League and CAVALADA Tour. The first round, at the height of 150 cm, proved to be difficult, and ultimately 9 of the 39 pairs managed to go clear.

“The course was very concentrated, the riders had to be focused all the way through it, and no one could be sure of success until the end, especially because of the last line – two large oxers 10 and 12, and a double combination of verticals between them.” – mentioned the sports director of the show - Szymon Tarant.

At the end, the best one was the last to go – Polish athlete Krzysztof Ludwiczak aboard 13-year-old Cros Blue, the winners of the last CAVALIADA Kraków Grand Prix back from 2020.

„The course at first glance seemed quite easy, but it turned out that the course designer set the bar at the right level. The hardest part was the intensity, there was no time to rest. Cros Blue is a very unique horse, he always wants to jump all the fences at one go. We have known each other for many years now, so I’m used to it. I think it looks more dangerous from the side then I feel it in the saddle. He jumped great and we managed to win. We are both in good shape, tomorrow I will try to cool his head down a bit, get back to normal and we hope to perform our best again on Sunday.” – said the winner.

Second place, by three hundreds of a second, went to the Polish national champion Wojciech Wojcianiec with Chintablue, and Przemysław Konopacki closed off the podium with Home-Run.

The leader of the World Cup Central European League is still Hungary’s Zoltan Czékus. Second position belongs to Andrius Petrovas from Lithuania, and third to Greek Angelos Touloupis. The latter is still the best in the CAVALIADA Tour ranking, followed by Jarosław Skrzyczyński. Wojciech Wojcianiec jumped up into third after today’s result. All will be decided on Sunday in the Grand Prix, for the prize of PKO Bank Polski, under the patronage of the Mayor of Kraków.

The Middle Tour class, for the prize of Krakowskie Zakłady Automatyki - Krakow Automation Works, under the patronage of Świat Koni, finished with the victory of home rider Dawid Skiba with La Vulkano L. Second place belonged to Krzysztof Ludwiczak with Confua, and third to Kamil Grzelczyk with Mister Dr Heigl.

In the first Immergas Dressage Tour class the highest score belonged to the leader of the ranking – Sandra Sysojeva with Jack Daniel’s – 69,900%. Ilona Janas – the viceleader – finished second with Zi Zi Top, and Anna-Maria Gawłowska was third riding Cardamon.

The winner of the Amateur Tour, for the prize of Acerbi Pharma, was Poland’s Lena Rybak-Massalska with Hassan van de Wittemoere. Second place went to Elżbieta Jodłowska with Rubin, and third to Katarzyna Łopatka with Romania.