Sweden’s Tomas Eriksson did what he had to do in the fifth and last Qualifier of the FEI World Cup™ Driving in Mechelen, Belgium, sponsored by Willy Naessens industrial and swimming pool constructions. He won the competition by driving a super safe round and herewith claimed a last minute starting ticket for the Final in Leipzig.

Dutch course designer Johan Jacobs, who is assistant course designer at the FEI World four-in-hand Driving Championships in the Netherlands in 2008, was also responsible for the course in Mechelen. After a somewhat messy first round, in which the drivers all made mistakes, the competition resulted in a close and exciting battle between Ijsbrand Chardon, Mark Weusthof and Tomas Eriksson. The course was shortened and the multiple obstacles were taken out.

Double World Champion Eriksson was determined to make up for his poor results in Stockholm and Geneva and knew that his only chance to qualify for the Final was to win in Mechelen. “I had a good feeling about my horses in the previous competitions, but the good results stayed away,” explains Eriksson. He made no changes to his team and decided to go for it again in Mechelen, and it worked. Eriksson passed the finish line 0.91 seconds faster than Chardon and became the glorious winner in Mechelen. Mark Weusthof set the fastest time in the winning round with his team of grey Dutch warm bloods, but a knock down kept him for his second World Cup victory of this season. “I made some mistakes, especially in the first round, but I now know what to do in the Final,” said Weusthof.

Wild card driver Gert Schrijvers, who was also responsible for the construction of the good looking and colourful obstacles, which gave the course a nice look, ended on a respectable fourth place. “My goal was to end in the top three, but knowing that my horses lack indoor rhythm, I am very pleased with my performance. I used my outdoor horses while most of the other competitors have a special indoor team.”

Frenchman Benjamin Aillaud was very disappointed when the jury corrected his result, with which he had qualified for the winning round. “We only wrote down two of the three knock downs Benjamin had,“ explained President of the jury Franz-Josef Vetter. “We quickly looked into the matter and asked the judges in the field. They all confirmed that three balls had fallen, so we corrected Benjamin’s result.” Aillaud dropped to the fifth place and is now in sixth position in the standings together with Jozsef Dobrovitz. Because of his second place in Geneva, Aillaud is entitled to a starting place in the Final.

Hungary’s Zoltan Lazar lost his chance to qualify for the Final. The 2004 World Champion came sixth in Mechelen: “The black trotter I use in the lead did not have his day today. My leader horses were very unstable which caused too many mistakes.” Lazar is determined to qualify for next season’s FEI World Cup™ Driving and is planning to put a special team together. Lazar does not regret it much that he won’t go to Leipzig: “It gives my the opportunity to go skiing, my other favourite sport!”

Second wild card driver Geert De Brauwer, whose horses were driven by reigning World Champion Felix Brasseur two weeks ago in Budapest, ended on the seventh place. The sympathetic owner of Debra Farm, a Lipizzaner stud farm, encountered some problems in the tight turns but truly enjoyed competing in Mechelen.

The participation of third wild card driver Dirk Stael in the FEI World Cup™ Driving in Mechelen was uncertain until the very last moment. Stael had forgotten to bring the FEI passport of one of his four horses, but luckily the passport arrived on time before the start of the first competition on Saturday and Stael received permission to start from the jury. The Belgian Champion however clearly lacked indoor driving experience and came eighth in the Nekkerhal.

The FEI World Cup™ Driving Final takes place in Leipzig, Germany, from 18 to 20 January 2008. The drivers will start from scratch.

Results CAI-W Mechelen:
1. Tomas Eriksson (Swe) 198.33
2. Ijsbrand Chardon (Ned) 199.24
3. Mark Weusthof (Ned) 202.73
4. Gert Schrijvers (Bel) 132.83
5. Benjamin Aillaud (Fra) 136.98
6. Zoltan Lazar (Hun) 142.87
7. Geert De Brauwer (Bel) 161.15
8. Dirk Stael (Bel) 206.37

Classification after 5 of 5 events:
1. Boyd Exell (Aus) 20
2. Ijsbrand Chardon (Ned) 17
3. Mark Weusthof (Ned) 15
4. Koos de Ronde (Ned) 12
4. Tomas Eriksson (Swe) 12
6. Benjamin Aillaud (Fra) 10
6. Jozsef Dobrovitz (Hun) 10
8. Zoltan Lazar (Hun) 8
9. Daniël Würgler (Sui) 6
10. Werner Ulrich (Sui) 5

Qualified for the Final in Leipzig (18-20 January 2008)
1. Boyd Exell (Aus)
2. Ijsbrand Chardon (Ned)
3. Mark Weusthof (Ned)
4. Koos de Ronde (Ned)
4. Tomas Eriksson (Swe)
6. Benjamin Aillaud (Fra)

At Mechelen, Press Officer is Edith de Reys, phone: +32 475 659281, e-mail: edith.dereys@skynet.be, website: www.jumping-mechelen.com

The FEI World Cup™ Driving Final takes place in Leipzig, Germany, from 18 to 20 January 2008. Press Officer is Press Officer is Andreas Kerstan, phone +49 4307 827970, e-mail: andreas.kerstan@comtainment.de, website: www.partner-pferd.de

More information: www.feiworldcup.org