Hamburg's Jumping Derby - Jüngel aims to appear on the billboard.
Someone is about to take his place now...
Marvin Jüngel (22) is aiming for the title as a poster boy!
A year ago, the Saxon rider shockingly won the Derby Park with the mare Balou's Erbin (15). He became the second-youngest winner in history! In the 93rd edition of the event on Sunday (3 p.m., NDR/ZDF), the office clerk trained now aims for his second victory.
The duo had a flawless round in the second qualifier on Friday, as did nine others. They finished third behind Frenchman Emeric George (35) with Dune Du Ru (11) and native hero Elisa Marlene von Hacht (22) from the Vierlanden region with Lancoon (15) in front of a crowd of 23,500 spectators.
During the award ceremony, Jüngel whispered to Derby boss Volker Wulff (67): "I'm working on the poster..."
Once completed, he plans to retire Balou's Erbin on the family farm in Kamenz. "This place in Hamburg is her home," ecstatically says Jüngel. "She arrived here and knew exactly what was expected of her. She was almost explosive in the warm-up arena."
However, he faces stiff competition. Wulff is anticipating "almost 30 starters" for his farewell derby. Top contenders are George (€10,000 prize money), who fearlessly tackled the wall at his Hamburg debut and was a commanding 9 seconds faster than the rest! Surprisingly, George had practiced the wall with his horse in their garden due to a lack of facilities and had studied the route and course online.
There's a significant detail: no French rider has ever won in Hamburg since 1920. "But that's not the main concern for me," emphasizes George. "What's more important is to be placed in the most demanding derby in the world. But it won't be easy. Everything starts anew on Sunday."
Even for von Hacht. She placed third in the first qualifier on Wednesday and second in the second. And on Sunday - her third Derby attempt? "My horse jumps so peculiarly that I'll take it as it comes with a good feeling."
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Source: symclub.org
