Is Becky Moody the favorite for the Fort Worth World Cup Final?

Since yesterday afternoon, following 's-Hertogenbosch , the nine qualifiers after the final round of the Western European League are known (see HERE). However, as mentioned previously, the starting lineup for the Texas seems to be quite different. Here's why.

Fears related to air transport, stallion's managing, Aachen/Olympic qualification's goal, bad past experience, the reasons are certainly as diverse as they are personal: nevertheless, horses.nl annonced yesterday what could have been imagined for some time already: according to the Dutch site, Justin Verboomen, Larissa Pauluis, Charlotte Fry, Isabell Werth and Marieke van der Putten would skip the World Cup Final in Fort Worth.

For the Belgians, the goal is clear and stated: to qualify for the Los Angeles Olympic Games at the World Championships in Aachen. At 15 years old, Glamourdale has never flown, even though he could have already been a contender for the Tokyo Olympics: the defending champion rider, having not entered any other horses on the FEI indoor circuit, cannot compete with another mount. Isabell Werth also has only one option: Wendy de Fontaine, since DSP Quantaz, with whom she finished second in Basel in 2025, has not competed since then. While her Viva Gold Old seems able of stepping in if necessary for the World Championships, Isabell Werth seems considering the experience of Bolette Wandt's daughter, Sezuan, for this summer. Finally, Marieke van der Putten, the top-ranked Dutch dressage rider with her exceptional mare Zantana, may well still be thinking about her experience at the 2023 Omaha Final with Tørveslettens Titanium RS2... Suffering from colic, the son of Totilas underwent emergency surgery there and only returned to the Netherlands three weeks later.

It remains to be seen, maybe next week, which pairs will benefit from these absences.

crédit photo : FEI/Leanjo de Koster