Kevin Kohmann Secures World Cup Final Start

Although only one rider can occupy the highest step of the podium, there were effectively two winners from Friday night’s Lövsta Stuteri World Cup™ Grand Prix Freestyle. The German anthem played for Frederic Wandres’ top score of 76.24% with Hof Kasselmann’s Verrenberg, but it also felt like a victory for second-placed Kevin Kohmann (USA), whose result in the showcase class of Week 10 at the 2026 Adequan® Global Dressage Festival (AGDF) secured him a start in April’s FEI World Cup™ Final in Texas

Kohmann was laser-focused on qualifying for his third straight FEI World Cup™ Final on Diamante Farms’ 17-year-old Dancier x Davignon I gelding, Dünensee. Not only did he need to finish as the top North American rider in the class, he also needed to score more than 73.85%. Once his score of 75.715% was announced, he had an anxious wait to see if Ashley Holzer (USA) would top him. 

A few mistakes crept into Holzer’s test on Hawtins San Floriana, and they finished in fourth with 73.555%, gaining Holzer the Frank & Eileen Leading Lady Rider award for Week 10. Only then could Kohmann celebrate his remarkable achievement of becoming the second U.S. rider this century to qualify for three straight FEI World Cup™ Finals on the same horse—also achieved by Laura Graves and Verdades. 

Kohmann joins his fellow U.S. athlete Christian Simonson on Indian Rock and Canadian rider Brittany Fraser-Beaulieu on Jaccardo, taking the third and final automatic qualification spot on the FEI World Cup™ North American League.  “I was standing on the side very nervous because when you have a rider like Ashley at the end, she could easily have beaten me,” admitted the Wellington-based Kohmann. “We got lucky today. ‘Dunee’ felt amazing. For the mistake in the two-tempis, I put the blame on the rider, but in the rest, he gave me everything.  “This guy still feels like he’s eight years old,” he added. “This horse has such a big heart. He made my career; he changed everything. If you’d told me four years ago that we’d make it to the World Cup™ Finals three times in a row, I’d have told you you were crazy. This is incredible and I’m stunned.”

Full results HERE

Grand Prix vidéo :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F45Poe7XPS0

crédit photo : Centre Line Media