This is where national pride comes into play, because most athletes consider it an honor to compete for their country at the Nations Cup finals. They chase the prestigious title of “Best Show Jumping Nation in the World”. Last year’s winner Belgium wants to defend his title, of course. And they are more than serious, the Belgian national team has brought only five weeks ago EM team Gold in Rotterdam. In this 110th season of the FEI Nations Cup, its appeal is greater than ever. Teams from around the world are competing for one of the most coveted awards in the show jumping Olympic discipline. Glory and honor are the one, 2 million euro prize money further motivation.
Equestrian sport's most prestigious team challenge
The Nations Cup series comprises 12 qualifying competitions throughout the year held across three continents. A total of 18 teams have been qualified to win the prestigious trophy in the Barcelona final. The 18 classified teams are Belgium, Brazil, Columbia, Egypt, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, United States and Spain as host nation.
A new chance for the germans
The german riders are among the best in the world. Nevertheless, things did not go well this year. They did not manage to score enough points this year. But they had luck. After each resignation in the group Asia/Australia and in the Middle East, they take part – and that with top team with Christian Ahlmann, Daniel Deusser, Marcus Ehning, Laura Klaphake and Maurice Tebbel.
Only the top eight teams after Friday’s second round will qualify for next Sunday’s title-decider, with the remainder going into Saturday’s Challenge Cup.
Have a look at FEI Jumping Nations Cupfinal in Barcelona 2018
