Great stories abound at the Mondial du Lion – Crédit Mutuel, where it is not uncommon for amateur riders to slip in among the ranks of the pros. However, this is less frequent in the 7-year-old world championship than in the 6-year-old division. This year, one of these great stories is that of Caro Hoffrichter, an antitrust lawyer, horse breeder, and high-level rider who competes up to the 4* level and is the German amateur champion at the 3* level.

“I love riding horses that I’ve bred; Archie CC is out of a mare that I bought at 5 years old and rode up to 3*—where she won. I then rode her in show jumping because she had a lot of scope. I have two sons out of her, Archie and a 6-year-old who is quite tall and a bit late-maturing. Their common trait is their excellent temperament, which both of them got from her. Generally, I bring the horses up to a certain level and then I sell them. As for Archie, we’ll see: he’s my favorite horse out of all the ones I’ve had. He has an exceptional mindset, a lot of energy, and he loves to work. He never makes a mistake; if something happens, it’s bound to be the rider’s fault…”

Well aware of her unique status, her goal here is to deliver her best performance. “Still, with a horse of this quality, I want to be competitive. At the German Amateur Championship, by finishing 3rd in the overall standings among the best pros, he proved that he has an enormous amount of quality. Today, he was bursting with energy. That’s how he’s at his most brilliant, but we also can’t have him overflowing with it.” To give herself every chance of success, she is accompanied here by her dressage coach, the German pure dressage rider Joana Peterka, as well as her mother, who helps her daily with the horses… and also two friends for the good times. She is also joined by Jordy Wilken, a Dutch rider competing in the 6-year-old division, with whom she trains year-round. And, of course, she will benefit from the advice of the German team and staff.

“I came here five years ago with another horse. I know what to expect, which makes it easier. But this is still the toughest course that Archie and I are going to tackle together. I hope I’ll have the stamina to go all the way: this year, I’ve done six competitions, whereas the pros do six courses a weekend! So, for the past month, every other day, I’ve been running up a hill to prepare.”