Czech rider and manager of Prague Lions, Anna Kellnerová, was having a rough time waiting for the performances of the riders, whose failures could have pushed her team to the Super Cup final.
She did not want to be seventh again in the team competition at the show jumping Prague Playoffs, as happened in the last two years. And it threatened this time as well, because before the last two teams, the Lions ranked fifth and had to wait to see if they would get to the six-man final.
Kellnerová remembered the years 2019 and 2021. “My first thought was that we’ll get through it again. But I thought to myself that it’s impossible, that we can’t be so unlucky, and I tried to think positively,” she told reporters.
She experienced a lot of waiting. “I was a little expressive, so people laughed at me. But that’s part of the sport,” she confided.
In the end, it was clear quickly, after two riders from the immediately following Stockholm Hearts team. “It’s true, but even if it’s only four minutes, it’s a long wait,” commented Kellner.
She herself was thrilled that she managed the challenging course with a single mistake in the saddle of Catch Me If You Can. “Catchie jumped really amazingly and I have to say that I have never experienced such a feeling on parkour,” she revealed.
She was glad that, given the starting number ten, she and her team mates could see how other riders coped with the demanding parkour. “Even though we all went through it, there were parts we didn’t know how to drive. When we saw some horses in front of us, we could get a better picture of the track,” she said.
The experience gained during the previous years of elite parkour events in Prague was accumulated. “I’m very happy that I started training with Niels in the middle of last season. Thanks to his way of training and the fact that he is easy-going but tells things as they are, I was able to ride a little more cool, not be so stressed. I have more things under control, which is a huge difference,” described the rider, who is being trained by Belgian teammate Niels Bruynseels.
This year, his compatriot Pieter Devos joined the team, and due to the problems of the other members of the team, they had to spend most of the season in the same way as the Prague event in three. This strengthened their team spirit. “We didn’t just fight for ourselves, but for all three as a team. We don’t have any rituals, we just always try to keep a funny atmosphere, which helps us,” said the participant of last year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Also in the final, the Prague Lions will strive for the best possible result, just as everyone else is thinking about placing on the podium. But Kellner planned a little relaxation for this late evening. “I’m going to say hello to my family and friends, because I haven’t seen them yet, and then we’ll have to sit down to let the adrenaline that we’re full of now subside a bit,” she added.
The two-round final of the Super Cup will start at 15:30 on Sunday.
