German riders dominated a top class afternoon of showjumping at the London International Horse Show Olympia.

Marco Kutscher and Cornet’s Cristallo triumphed in the Longines FEI World Cup qualifier (Sunday 21 December), just beating his team-mate Daniel Deusser with an equally daring performance on catch ride Carriere.

Third place went to Sweden’s Malin Baryard-Johnsson riding the 14-year-old one-eyed stallion H&M Tornesch – a great result for her sponsors on Olympia’s H&M Sunday.

Robert Whitaker (Catwalk IV) finished best of the British riders in fourth – no mean feat from a difficult first draw in an electric 13-rider jump-off. Ireland’s Bertram Allen, 19, recorded the fastest time of the afternoon but with one down on the 10-year-old mare Molly Malone V for seventh.

“I actually didn’t have the perfect jump-off – the beginning was fine but I missed coming in to the double,” said Marco, previously based with the great Ludger Beerbaum. “I hoped I was quicker but only when I saw the screen was I sure. It’s a very special show and I look forward to coming here every year. I was actually lucky that some other German riders cancelled so I got in. But it’s one of my favourite shows of the indoor season.”

Second placed Daniel Deusser, the current World Cup title-holder, only sat on 11-year-old mare Carriere on Tuesday after two of his top horses were injured. Five days later they were on the podium in London.

“She’s done an unbelievable job today,” he said.

Robert Whitaker and the 11-year-old Catwalk IV have been on flying form recently with some good results in Madrid and La Coruna. Find out what he thinks is the secret to this quirky horse’s success in this video below.

Don’t miss the bumper report from all the jumping action at Olympia in next week’s issue of Horse & Hound, out on 31 December.

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German riders enjoyed a strong start on home soil in the first leg of the 2011 Rolex FEI World Cup jumping final in Leipzig.

Marco Kutscher took top spot in this opening speed class riding Cash, with title-holder Marcus Ehning (Sabrina) in second and Christian Ahlmann (Taloubet Z) in third. Just 0.5sec separated the first three.

Ireland’s Billy Twomey and the 14-year-old mare Tinka’s Serenade hit the back rail of an oxer to finish in 16th place (just behind Meredith Michaels-Beerbaum and Shutterfly) on four faults while Denis Lynch (Abbervail Van Het Dingeshof) took a tumble through the combination and was eliminated. The 34-year-old was said to be none the worse for his fall.

Billy was confident beforehand, saying: “I’m in it to win, and hopefully my horses can keep up the form they’ve been in and we can give it a proper go.

“I will be using Tinka’s Serenade for all the World Cup classes, as she has proved she can be strong in all phases, I also have Romanov for the grand prix and Molly Malone for the young horse classes. We had a warm up class yesterday and Tinka was sixth and I was pleased with the way she jumped.”

There are no British riders competing in the World Cup, although Ellen Whitaker is competing in the supporting classes.

The second round takes place tomorrow (Friday) and points calculated from these first two competitions will determine who goes through to Sunday’s final.

Don’t miss full report in next week’s H&H (out 5 May).

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An International Equestrian Federation (FEI) tribunal has denied FEI bosses permission to suspend show jumper Marco Kutscher and former German federation secretary-general Hanfried Haring.

The FEI had announced it wished to suspend the German rider from competition and Mr Haring from the FEI Bureau until the result of a probe by an ethics panel (news, 4 June).

Mr Kutscher, Mr Haring and former team vet Bjorn Notling are being investigated for horse abuse following allegations that treatment given to Mr Kutscher’s horse at the 2008 Olympics caused it to collapse.

A separate investigation into Mr Notling’s actions is ongoing.

This article was first published in Horse & Hound (11 June, ’09)

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The International Equestrian Federation (FEI) is urging anyone with information about alleged doping by German national riders to contact the investigation they have set up.

The FEI set up an ethics panel to look into the actions of German riders after Marco Kutscher claimed he had used unregistered medication on his horse at the 2008 Olympics.

Then in an interview with a German newspaper, on 24 May, German number one Ludger Beerbaum admitted using illegal practices in his horses.

The German federation reacted by dissolving all its national teams and on Friday (29 May) the FEI announced it was passing on the probe to the professional investigators Quest.

The FEI says it wants to know whether rules have been broken, is so by whom and whether this has affected any Olympic medals.

In a statement the FEI said: “The panel is of the opinion that there may have been breaches of FEI rules by riders, team officials and national federation representatives. It concludes that it should carry out a detailed investigation in order to make specific recommendations to the FEI president on these matters.”

The FEI asks anyone with information to contact Quest in confidence on 0044 20 7224 4004.

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Former Metropolitan Police Commissioner Lord Stevens will chair the International Equestrian Commission’s (FEI) ethics panel to investigate possible horse doping by the German equestrian team at the 2008 Olympic Games.

The FEI launched the investigation on 4 May after German Olympic show jumper Marco Kutscher told a German news agency that he had used the potentially prohibited substances arnica and lactanase on his horse Cornet Obolensky at the Games in Hong Kong.

The panel will also include the president of the United States Equestrian Federation eventer David O’Connor, the chairman of the FEI tribunal Ken Lalo and FEI director of jumping John Roche.

Lord Stevens said: “I am privileged to have been asked to chair the FEI Ethics Panel for what is such a sensitive and important matter and to assist the organisation in its efforts to ensure the integrity of sport and horse welfare.”

Previous inquiries chaired by Lord Stevens include those into the death of Princess Diana and allegations of corruption in British football.

Alex Mclin, Secretary General of the International Equestrian Federation, said the panel had been set up “to get to the bottom of the issue as soon as we can”.

Listen to his full explanation below.

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The International Equestrian Federation (FEI) is investigating doping allegations against German show jumper Marco Kutscher and former team vet Bjorn Notling at the Hong Kong Olympic Games.

A presidential ethics panel has been set up by the FEI to assess practices among members of the German equestrian team.

The German Equestrian Federation is also investigating the allegations.

This action follows comments in the German media that imply riders may have broken FEI drug rules.

It is alleged that the prohibited substance lactanase arnica was used on Kutscher’s horse Cornet Obolensky in Hong Kong.

The FEI has stated that the ethics panel will thoroughly investigate any evidence and the surrounding circumstances and make recommendations to the President as to further action.

The composition of the panel will be announced shortly.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now