Dries Degrieck and Team Belgium Triumph in Windsor
SportDries Degrieck simply seems unstoppable. After his double victory at the CAIO4* in Kladruby nad Labem three weeks ago, he continued his remarkable form in Windsor, where he once again made history with two gold medals. Together with his Belgian teammates, he delivered a weekend full of tension, emotion, and top-level sport.
Chester Weber finished second in the overall standings, while third place went to IJsbrand Chardon. The Dutch team, consisting of Koos de Ronde, Bram Chardon and IJsbrand Chardon, also secured third place in the Nations Cup standings.
IJsbrand Chardon delivered an exceptionally consistent competition, finishing sixth in dressage, fifth in the marathon, and driving a clear cones round. His third place overall pleased Dutch national coach Ad Aarts.
“IJsbrand delivered three strong phases, and I’m very pleased with that,” said Aarts.
Dries Degrieck impressed in the dressage with a personal best score of 38.39 penalty points. It was an outstanding performance that placed him among some of the true legends of carriage driving: American top driver Chester Weber temporarily led with 34.73 penalty points, while Australian multiple world champion Boyd Exell followed on 40.12. For Belgium, it immediately became clear that anything was possible. Thanks to the scores of Glenn and Dries, Team Belgium stood in an excellent second place after dressage.
Bram Chardon and Koos de Ronde lost some valuable points in dressage. “Koos and Bram competed with some less experienced horses and picked up a few mistakes due to tension,” explained Aarts.
A Marathon Not to Be Underestimated
The marathon phase once again proved to be a true combination of speed, technical skill, and courage. It quickly became clear that the course was highly demanding. Several drivers incurred penalties due to knocked balls or technical mistakes.
For Tom Stokmans, bad luck struck in obstacle 5, where an unfortunate incident cost him valuable seconds and points. He eventually finished the marathon in 24th place.
For Glenn Geerts, however, the day unfolded very differently. With the fastest time in obstacle 6, he secured an impressive third place in the marathon — just behind teammate Dries Degrieck, who posted the fastest times in obstacles 2, 5, and 8, as well as second-fastest times in obstacles 1 and 4. An exceptional achievement both individually and for the Belgian team.
Thanks to these results, Team Belgium moved into the lead in the Nations Cup standings. Individually, Dries also took over the overall lead, although his advantage over Chester Weber was only one point going into the decisive cones phase. Glenn Geerts climbed to sixth place overall, only one knocked ball away from the podium positions.
For the Dutch team, the marathon also went well, allowing them to move up the rankings. Bram Chardon finished fourth in the marathon standings, while Koos de Ronde placed eighth but recorded the fastest time in three separate obstacles.
The Final Decision Fell Today
Tom Stokmans ultimately finished in 23rd place overall. Glenn Geerts drove a clear cones round and pushed his team to the limit right until the final metres. Unfortunately, he incurred 0.20 penalty points for exceeding the time allowed. Nevertheless, his strong performance secured him an excellent fourth place overall, narrowly missing the podium.
By that point, Belgium’s lead over Germany in the team standings was large enough that the team already knew the gold medal was secured. Individually, however, the title still had to be decided.
In the final cones phase, the Netherlands held firmly onto third place thanks to two clear rounds.
“Unfortunately, the cones course was a bit too easy, which meant we couldn’t move further up the standings. We did not come to Windsor with our strongest possible line-up, because we wanted some horses to gain more experience. Winning was therefore not our main priority this year, although of course I wouldn’t have minded,” said the Dutch national coach.
One of the favourites, Boyd Exell, withdrew before the cones phase on Sunday. He chose not to start in the final phase after one of his lead horses sustained a minor injury during the marathon when it slipped and became entangled in the traces.
