Team PracTeam champions USA added three more gold medals to their remarkable haul as the FEI Para Dressage World Championship concluded with all five grades taking center stage on Freestyle day.
Fiona Howard, Marie Vonderheyden and Kate Shoemaker were crowned Freestyle world champions for the U.S., while the Netherlands’ Rixt van der Horst and Sweden’s Lena Malmström completed the lineup of gold medalists on the final day.
For Vonderheyden and Shoemaker, victory completed a clean sweep of individual, team and Freestyle honors, while Howard added Freestyle gold to the team title she helped the USA secure on Saturday. Rebecca Hart also qualified for the Freestyle with Floratina, and she placed seventh in Grade III.
Howard Tops the Podium
After narrowly missing the individual podium earlier in the week, Howard ended her championship on a high by securing Grade II Freestyle gold with Diamond Dunes, laying down an unbeatable score of 81.86% with a rhythmical, flowing performance.
“He went in there today and really gave me everything. He’s just such a special horse. I’m so proud of how he’s handled this week. My muscles are a little bit tighter today, but Dunes just took such good care of me,” Howard said of the 13-year-old Hanoverian. “It’s been a phenomenal week—a big highlight was our team competition, and it’s just incredible to be here in Aachen, especially with such a phenomenal horse.”
Great Britain’s Jemima Green closed out her week on a high, too, clinching silver with Fantabulous by smashing her personal best to score 80.93% at her first FEI Para Dressage World Championship.
“That’s a huge PB, which is so, so exciting,” Green said. “I came out of the arena not really knowing what to expect—I knew there would be some massive scores in the grade today, but I didn’t necessarily think I would be one of them! So that is a truly incredible way to end my first World Championship.”
Bronze went to Grade II individual world champion Heidemarie Dresing, who completed a memorable week on home soil with her third medal of the championship aboard Poesie 143.
“It felt really great today, she felt like she was dancing, and I had a smile on my face the whole time. It was delightful for me,” Dresing said of her score of 80.80% with the 11-year-old Oldenburg mare.
A ‘Fan Tastic’ Week for Vonderheyden
Vonderheyden was crowned world champion for the third time this week, scoring 80.54% with Fan Tastico H to add the Freestyle gold medal to her collection.
“The composer designed the music just for him, and I love it; it suits him very well,” Vonderheyden said of her Freestyle set to music in the style of show tunes. “Today ended my week on a super note at an amazing and well-organized event.”
Sara Morganti of Italy punched the air in delight after her final halt with Bond Girl 18, knowing she’d put in a great performance for the judges. When her score of 78.76% was announced—enough to secure the silver medal—Morganti was overcome with emotion.
“I am without words, because I can’t believe this has happened, or the improvement she has made day by day,” Morganti said of the 7-year-old mare’s progress over the competition. “To come here and win a medal, and then two, wasn’t in my wildest dreams. It’s incredible for her to perform how she has done. For me, just that alone is my personal gold medal.”
For the first time this week, reigning 2024 Paris Paralympic champion Rihards Snikus of Latvia achieved a podium place with a bronze-medal performance on his new ride, the 6-year-old Rise and Shine, the youngest horse in the competition.
“We didn’t expect this at all this morning,” Snikus’ sister, Elina Brigmane, said on his behalf of their 75.42% score. “This week is just the second time he’s been to an international competition, so all we wanted for them was just to do their best, and they have massively exceeded all expectations.”
Victory for Vianne With Shoemaker
For the third time at this championship, Shoemaker claimed victory with Vianne in Grade IV, scoring 83.30%. The pair debuted a daring floor plan that included a four-loop counter canter with a flying change in the middle section and an impromptu extended trot down the final centerline.
“There are no words, really. It’s just amazing to have the ride on a horse that feels like she enjoys it so much,” Shoemaker said of her performance with the 10-year-old Hanoverian mare. “None of this has sunk in whatsoever. To be on the hallowed showground that is Aachen and to come away with three gold medals is beyond what I could have hoped for.”
Reigning FEI Para Dressage European Freestyle champion Alexia Pittier of France rose to the occasion with Sultan 768 to win silver on a score of 78.64% at her FEI Para Dressage World Championship debut.
“I’m very happy with how he has grown in confidence throughout the three tests, and today he felt like he had wings,” Pittier said of the 11-year-old Hanoverian gelding. “The medal is a great bonus, but the principle is the connection with my horse, and how he felt was more important to me.”
There was a new face on the podium for Germany when Helen Brandt stepped up to claim bronze after scoring a personal best of 78.00% with Vulkan Vegas IB.
“I have no words for all of this, because I’m just so happy; I never thought my childhood dream of winning a medal at Aachen would come true,” Brandt said. “My horse is incredible. I love him with my whole heart. It felt like we were flying in the arena, and I could feel the connection to him,” she said.
Van der Horst Adds a Second World Title in Aachen
Rixt van der Horst completed a golden double in Aachen as the Netherlands athlete and Eisma’s Royal Fonq N.O.P. claimed Grade III Freestyle gold with a score of 83.12%.
The result repeated the top three from the individual competition earlier in the week, with Tobias Thorning Joergensen (Denmark) taking silver and Francesca Salvadè (Italy) bronze.
“I love my Freestyle, and I’m so proud of Fonq and my whole team here and at home making it possible for me to win this second gold,” van der Horst said. “This week couldn’t have been any better, it’s like a fairytale. I was hoping for this result, but I could never dream of it.”
Joergensen claimed his second silver medal of the competition, scoring 79.94% with championship debutant Blue Hors Zackorado, a 10-year-old Oldenburg stallion.
“He felt really good today, and maybe the score didn’t reflect what I had hoped, but I’m not disappointed in him at all. He’s a young horse with so much more to give,” Joergensen said. “It’s been a fantastic competition and an amazing feeling to compete in such an arena, and I look forward to the future with him.”
Salvadè and Escari were just a hair’s breadth behind Joergensen for bronze on a score of 79.58%, a second championship personal best for the pair.
“I’m really happy with another medal at the FEI Para Dressage World Championship—you can hope for a result like this, but I never expected to go back home with two individual medals and the qualification for the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympics. It is like a dream come true,” Salvadè said.
A five-time U.S. Paralympian Hart and Floratina rode their freestyle from the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. They posted a final score of 74.32%.
“I am so pleased that we came out here and did three very consistent days,” said Hart. “Floratina has been perfect; that first section of trot work was on the money every beat. I never thought we were going to make it to Aachen. I thought Paris was going to be our swan song. But at 18, she’s happy and fit, so we will see what the future holds.”
Historic Gold for Sweden
In a historic win for Sweden, Grade V rider Lena Malmström and her homebred Fabulous Fidelie took gold on a personal-best score of 79.67% in the last competition of the day.
“This feels amazing, and in Sweden this is a fantastic result for para dressage riders—it will give us so much recognition,” Malmström said of her first-ever gold medal. “I almost can’t describe in words how I feel about my horse, she is like my everything. She gave me chills down my spine today, she was so good,” she said of the 14-year-old Swedish Warmblood mare.
Germany’s Regine Mispelkamp won her third medal of the competition in front of her home crowd, taking silver on a score of 78.18% with Highlander Delight’s.
“He was so great today, he felt amazing,” Mispelkamp said of the 14-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding. “The motto of the FEI World Championships, ‘Welcome Home,’ has been lived by us in the German team this week. We have loved competing in front of our home crowd. I am so proud to compete for my country.”
It took until the final rider of the day to decide the bronze medal in Grade V. When Britney de Jong of the Netherlands started her final line toward the judges, she was already visibly emotional, knowing she’d given herself the best chance of a medal on her last competitive ride with Caramba N.O.P.
“It felt amazing today, we were really enjoying the ride, and it was the best time we have ever had together,” de Jong said of her 77.44% score with the 19-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding, who is now heading into retirement with de Jong. “I want him to retire from the sport while he is still very fresh and fit, so it’s very special that I can do that having won three medals together this week.”
The curtain closed on five days of competition at the 2026 FEI Para Dressage World Championship in Aachen, with 11 sets of medals awarded, seven 2028 Los Angeles Paralympic qualification places secured, and 93 horses heading home with their athletes.