Armando Trapote and his horse Tornado VS have achieved a historic top 10 finish in show jumping at the Aachen World Championships in Germany. The result marks the first time a Spanish rider has reached the top 10 in the discipline at the tournament.
Trapote entered the final day of competition with 4.57 points and concluded the event in 10th place with a total of 20.57 points. The result stands as the best performance by a Spanish pair in the 21st century.
Swiss rider Steve Guerdat won the individual gold medal riding Dynamix de Belheme. Belgian competitor Thibeau Spits took silver on Impress-K van't Kattenheye Z, and British rider Harry Charles secured bronze aboard LT Holst Freda.
Imma Roquet, another Spanish competitor, also delivered a standout performance by finishing 20th while riding Irivola del Maset under Trapote's direction. Roquet arrived in Germany ranked 263rd in the world. Her horse, an 11-year-old Spanish Sport Horse mare, was bred by Roquet's own family.
The Aachen World Championships serve as one of the most prominent fixtures on the international equestrian calendar, drawing top riders from around the globe to compete in multiple disciplines.
Trapote and Roquet were among three of Spain's four representatives to reach the top 60 after the first two qualifiers, advancing alongside Marquez Galobardes. Both Trapote and Roquet successfully made the cut for the final 25. Galobardes, however, was unable to compete in the third event after his mare suffered a minor injury.
Spain Olympic qualification
Spain narrowly missed qualifying for the team show jumping final, finishing 14th out of 31 participating nations. The national team ended the competition 2.33 points behind Ireland, who claimed the 10th and final qualifying spot for the decisive round.
Failing to reach the team final means Spain has lost the opportunity to secure a qualification spot for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games through this tournament. Following the second qualifying round, the four Spanish pairs held 14.02 penalty points. This left them just one knockdown short of finishing among the top 10 teams that moved on to fight for medals and the seven available Olympic berths.
Team world championship results
In the team competition, Germany secured the world championship 16 years after their previous title in Kentucky. The German squad won with 4.48 points. The team featured Marcus Ehning on Coolio, Sophie Hinners on Iron Dames Singclair, Daniel Deusser on Otello de Guldenboom, and Richard Vogel on United Touch S.
Deusser delivered a penalty-free round, which mathematically guaranteed the title for Germany before Vogel, considered one of the country's top riders, even started his course.
Belgium claimed the silver medal with 11.69 points. The Belgian team consisted of Nicola Philippaerts, Pieter Devos, Thibeau Spits, and Abdel Said.
Great Britain, the reigning Olympic champions in the event, completed the podium to take bronze with 12.98 points. The British effort relied on Ben Maher, Harry Charles, Scott Brash, and Adrian Whiteway.
